Christmas wasn’t merry for the people of Buffalo, New York in 2022, due to the intense snowstorm that blew through and wrecked lives. 

Anndel Taylor was one of the ones who didn’t make it. 

The weather left no less than 50 inches of snow and dozens of people dead in its wake.

Anndel Taylor, 22, finished her nursing assistant shift on Friday before Christmas and started her drive home. She was caught in the blizzard that stalled traffic on the road. 

According to Taylor’s family, she spoke to them on the phone while trapped in her car, while the snow started to bury her vehicle. She sent them a video from inside her car, as she waited to be rescued. 

They said she called 911 but help never came. Sadly, Taylor was only minutes away from home.

For the next 18 hours, Taylor was trapped inside her car and was found dead the next day. Her family said that the emergency vehicles were not able to make it to the scene since it was hard to travel due to the snow. Tomeshia Brown, one of Taylor’s sisters, said that emergency workers also got stuck due to the weather. 

A random female passerby took Taylor’s body to the coroner using a truck that was able to go through thick snow. She contacted Taylor’s family when she discovered that they were searching for her on social media.

The family believes that Taylor died of carbon monoxide poisoning from her exhaust pipe, as she was not dressed as if she had been cold. 

According to Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz, the blizzard is the “worst storm probably in our lifetime.” Hospitals were full and emergency personnel are still searching for victims.

Taylor’s stepmother, Laneesha Smith, blasted Buffalo officials, saying they should have imposed the travel ban early on. Clearing the snow was impossible, as it got covered quickly soon after they tried to clear an area up.

A ban on travel had been issued shortly before 9 am, too late because within an hour the snow began to rapidly fall.

“They said they were prepared for this storm but they were not prepared for this storm,” Smith said. “So many lives probably could have been saved if they put the travel ban in the night before.”

Smith said she has video evidence that police and plows did not help her daughter on Saturday while they were trying to assist others. 

Taylor’s family has started a GoFundMe for her wake. More than $15,000 has already been raised for her funeral and burial.