The family of 22-year-old Anndel Taylor is speaking out following her tragic death last week. As previously reported, the North Carolina native, who worked in Buffalo, New York, was returning home from work when her car got stuck in the heavy winter snow. Anndel decided to sleep in her car as she waited for help to arrive, but by the time responders reached her, she was found lifeless inside her vehicle.
Her stepmother, Laneesha Smith, has since spoken out about Anndel’s tragic passing, insisting that if officials had enforced a travel ban before the blizzard erupted through New York, so many lives could have been saved. According to reports, more than 30 people have already died in the storm, with that number expected to rise in the coming days as more of these incidents are occurring throughout the city.
Anndel Taylor, 22, died in her car after being trapped by Buffalo blizzard while driving home from work. She was found after 18 hours. She sent her family this final video from inside the car. pic.twitter.com/w8GBwR9UOm
— Mike Sington (@MikeSington) December 27, 2022
Speaking to the New York Post, Laneesha said, “They said they were prepared for this storm but they were not prepared for this storm.” She also spoke of the moment they had tried to rescue Anndel after finally being able to get to her location, adding, “We just could not dig it out was like as soon as we dig one spot out, the next spot is just covered.”
“They just kept telling her they would try to get to her, they would try to get to her,” she continued, referring to the many times 911 had been called in a desperate attempt to help Anndel. Other times, the family was told that dispatchers were having trouble sending responders to her due to the heavy snow.
Anndel — who worked as a nurse — is believed to have left her job 20 minutes early as she already feared the weather conditions were rather dangerous to drive in. Even when she made her way back home, she noticed how the snow was quickly building up on her car while other cars came to a standstill in fear that those drivers would cause an accident due to icy road conditions.
A devastating gut punch #Buffalo #AnndelTaylor pic.twitter.com/71ZsG2T0u5
— Sophia Tesfaye (@SophiaTesfaye) December 27, 2022
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“We were calling, her mother was calling, her sisters I’m sure were calling, my son was calling. They had multiple calls from everyone who knew, calling the police and 911,” Laneesha added. “They had a number up for the National Guard – that number wasn’t working. We were calling all of the fire stations in the area — everything in the area where she was so maybe somebody would go out and try to help her.