A single father from Buffalo who recently lost his wife to COVID suffered a house fire during the blizzard 'that took my last of everything,' including his wife's ashes

• A father lost his wife's ashes in a fire during a historic winter storm.

• The fire and storm destroyed Gary Ransom's home and dogs.

• Heavy snow made it difficult for first responders to reach the fire.

Ransom, a nurse in Buffalo, New York, was in the middle of a 96-hour shift at the Erie County Medical Center when the worst winter storm in 50 years hit.

Her father, Gary Ransom, had hunkered down with his two young daughters, in their house, using their stove to keep warm on December 23 during a brutal winter storm that swept Erie County, New York, over Christmas weekend and left at least 34 dead.

The family took shelter at a different bus station. Gary Ransom's house was on fire.

The police and fire departments did not respond to the request.

The house fire hydrant was frozen and they couldn't get down the street to stop the fire.

It was another sad loss for the father of five, who had lost his wife, Keionna Ransom, to COVID-19 complications.

She said she was sad that her father and others had been affected by the weather. This year has been a poor one for him.

The 'blizzard of the century'

The storm was called the "blizzard of the century" by the governor. The Washington Post reported that 34 people had died due to the winter weather in Erie County.

When the fire broke out at Gary Ransom's home, his family members were safe at the bus station, but his stepmother's ashes and heirlooms were lost.

Four of Ransom's dogs died in the fire. Gary Ransom's job at the hotel made it possible for him and his daughters to move to a hotel room.

"He just so happened to work two jobs, and one of his jobs is as a hotel manager at the Red Roof Inn, so his CFO offered him the rooms that he needed until he no longer needed them."

Other residents sought the assistance of strangers to survive the storm. When she saw a man cry for help after the storm, she took him in and cared for him until he got to a hospital.

The Ransom family felt the city did not do enough but said the community did

She told Insider that the roads in her father's neighborhood are still covered in snow. The breakdown in the response to the storm has caused infighting between Buffalo Mayor Brown and Erie County executives, who have each accused the other of not doing enough.

"The storm happened between Friday and Saturday, and it's Wednesday, and they still haven't come into the inner city and done any of the things that needed to be done," she said. It makes everything unsafe if you can't walk on the sidewalk because there is snow in the street.

The Buffalo Police Department did not reply immediately.

Ransom raised over $6,000 for her father's relocation on the first day of the campaign. The fire took Ransom's last of everything.

We lost four dogs in the house fire, my stepmother's ashes, and all of her belongings, and nothing will be replaced. It shows that you don't know what the community is like until you need it, and they really showed up and showed out for my father and sisters.

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