What Buffalo, N.Y. and parts of Ontario look like after being walloped by snowstorm

Niagara preparing for incoming snowstorm Niagara Falls Mayor Jim Diodati speaks about the incoming storm and says it will be very unpredictable since Lake Erie hasn't frozen over.

A lake-effect snowstorm walloping Buffalo, N.Y. and parts of Ontario made its way north over the weekend, bringing an estimated 1.2 metres of snow to parts of New York and more than 20 centimetres across Ontario.

Starting late Thursday night, the snow piled high along the streets into Friday morning, when residents in Buffalo woke up to buried cars and almost no visibility of roads.

The storm system was expected to bring parts of Ontario a similar pain, as Environment Canada said some communities along Lake Huron and Lake Erie will receive upwards of 80 centimetres of snow by late Sunday.

The U.S. National Weather Service recorded 195.5 centimetres of snow in Orchard Park, N.Y. on Saturday, one of the hardest-hit areas. This storm system could be historic for dropping the most snow within a 24-hour period in the state of New York, but meteorologist Jason Alumbaugh told The Associated Press it's still too soon to say.

By Sunday afternoon, residents started emerging from snow-covered homes, attempting to clear driveways and uncover cars before the next round of flurries starts early Monday morning.

Lake-effect snowstorms occur when cold air sweeps across warm water, blowing moisture toward land until it forms into large snowflakes.

Snow squall warnings continue to be in effect Sunday for most of southern Ontario in Parry Sound-Muskoka, Peterborough-Kawartha Lakes, Waterloo-Wellington, York-Durham and Belleville - Quinte - Northumberland.

The potentially historic storm for Buffalo and treacherous conditions in Ontario continue as residents document the winter wonderland on social media.

With files from The Canadian Press and The Associated Press