Watch: 'blizzard of the century' in US, icicles cover New York state buildings

Emergency crews in New York were scrambling Monday to rescue marooned residents from what authorities called the "blizzard of the century," a relentless storm that has left at least 25 dead in the state and is causing US Christmas travel chaos.

Blizzard conditions continue to prevail in parts of the US Northeast, the stubborn remnants of a massive sprawl of extreme weather that gripped the country over several days, causing widespread power outages, travel delays and at least 47 deaths across nine states.

In New York state authorities have described ferocious conditions, particularly in Buffalo, with hours-long whiteouts, bodies being discovered in vehicles and under snow banks, and emergency personnel going "car to car" searching for more motorists -- alive or dead.

The perfect storm of fierce snow squalls, howling wind and sub-zero temperatures forced the cancellation of more than 15,000 US flights in recent days, including at least 2,600 on Monday, according to tracking site Flightaware.com.

Buffalo -- a US city in Erie County that is no stranger to foul winter weather -- is the epicenter of the crisis, buried under staggering amounts of snow.

"Certainly it is the blizzard of the century," Governor Kathy Hochul told reporters, adding it was "way too early to say this is at its completion."

Also Watch| 'Blizzard of the century' in US, icicles cover New York state buildings

Hochul said some western New York towns got walloped with "30 to 40 inches (0.75 to 1 meter) of snow overnight."

The National Weather Service forecast up to 14 more inches Monday in addition to the several feet that have already left the city buried in snow, with officials struggling to get emergency services back online.

Erie County executive Mark Poloncarz told a press briefing he was "heartbroken" to report the blizzard-related death toll had climbed to 25 county-wide.

Poloncarz said Erie's death toll will likely surpass that of Buffalo's infamous blizzard of 1977, when nearly 30 people died.

"We do expect that there will be more" deaths from the ongoing storm, he added.

With more snow in the forecast and most of Buffalo "impassable," he joined Hochul in warning residents to bunker down and stay in place.