Winter Storm Fern Blamed for 10 Deaths in New York City

New York City officials say at least 10 people have died in the city during Winter Storm Fern and the ensuing Arctic cold snap, including 90‑year‑old Doreen Ellis, a Brooklyn woman with dementia who wandered out of her Crown Heights apartment overnight in only a nightgown and was found dead in a nearby backyard. Mayor Zohran Mamdani said Tuesday that six people died overnight Friday and one overnight Saturday as temperatures plunged to the city’s coldest levels in eight years, and the medical examiner is still determining how many of the deaths will be officially ruled hypothermia. The National Weather Service’s Weather Prediction Center is warning that another winter storm could hit parts of the East Coast this weekend, potentially bringing the coldest and longest‑lasting freeze in years for some areas. Nationwide, officials in states hit by the same weather pattern have reported at least 50 deaths tied to the severe cold, including plow strikes, sledding accidents and people found in unheated homes. The case of Ellis, who neighbors say had previously wandered in summer months, highlights the heightened risks winter storms pose for elderly and cognitively impaired residents when families, landlords and social services are unprepared for extended sub‑freezing conditions.