Storm encases New York houses in ice

Last week's double whammy of hurricane-force winds followed by an arctic blast has turned several homes along Lake Ontario near Rochester into ice palaces.

A thick layer of ice coats a row of lakeside homes in the town of Webster, just east of Rochester. Everything is frozen solid - even the grass and a picnic table with benches.

A violent windstorm last Wednesday produced wind gusts of 70 mph to 80 mph along Lake Ontario's southern shore, knocking out power to more than 100,000 utility customers in the Rochester area, including the now-ice-encased lakeside homes in Webster.  There is no word on where the owners of the homes are right now.

The spray from the high waves crashing on shore froze as temperatures plunged into the teens.

Temperatures aren't expected to climb above 32 degrees until Friday.

With the Associated Press