Lake-effect storms dump snow in western New York

FULTON, N.Y. (AP) — A woman died after her car collided with a stranded minivan during whiteout conditions along eastern Lake Ontario, where overnight lake-effect squalls produced up to three feet of snow.
Fulton officials declared a snow emergency Monday night and advised against any unnecessary travel. Some surrounding areas in northwestern Oswego County received up to three feet of snow before the squalls weakened early Tuesday.

State police said they are investigating whether a medical condition may have caused the death of Kathleen Pluff, 56, of Fulton, late Monday afternoon.

Pluff was in her 1999 Dodge Durango on Route 481 when she drove off the shoulder and hit a minivan that had become stuck in a snow bank. The minivan was one of several vehicles forced off the road by slick conditions and extremely heavy snowfall. The other driver was unhurt and the collision caused only minor damage to both vehicles, troopers said.

Authorities said there were no serious injuries among the 42 students from the Red Creek School District who were aboard a school bus when it overturned Monday afternoon in a ditch in Cayuga County.

The heavy snow also caused officials to shut down portions of Interstate 481 in the Syracuse area.

In western New York, a foot to two feet of snow has fallen in areas of northern Chautauqua and Cattaraugus counties south of Buffalo.

Magnitude 6.5 Quake - KERMADEC ISLANDS, NEW ZEALAND