Buffalo, New York
CNN
–
Casey Maccarone’s mom has always been the perfect woman, but even so, when Monique Alexander decided to come out on Christmas Day, Maccarone was worried.
It would have been an easy decision any other day, but a storm was moving in – one that could leave parts of Western New York under more than 50 inches of snow.
Maccarone was already worried, checking for notices of store closings on Facebook, he told CNN.
But his mother wanted out and Alexander, 52, said he would return and leave without mentioning where he was going. Maccarone, who has lived with Alexander since August, said she thought her mother was trying to get to the store before it closed.
Alexander never returned. His body was found a few hundred meters from the house.
We were waiting for him to come home. I knew something was wrong immediately, so I accepted it immediately, but it is difficult to know that he was outside for a long time, because there were no emergency responders who were allowed to go outside, “said Maccarone, speaking outside his family’s home on Wednesday.
Alexander had experienced strong storms before, and traveled everywhere.
“She’s always felt like a superwoman and invincible, so I think she just thinks she can handle it,” Maccarone said. “I can’t tell my mother anything, she will do what she wants. I think they just think they have enough power. ”
He heard cries for help during the deadly storm. His actions saved a life
Alexander left around 3 p.m. Hours later, Maccarone posted about his mother on a Facebook group for Buffalo residents weathering the worst of the weather. About 15 minutes later, another stranger messaged her and described her mother’s shirt and blue jeans. He confirmed that it was Alexander and asked if he had seen him.
“Can I call you?” Maccarone said he asked her.
Once on the video chat, he immediately fell down. The man told her that he was missing and was walking when he saw Alexander in the snow. He moved his body out of the weather, under the canvas of the business where he would not be buried under the snow.
Later, the National Guard took his body. Alexander is one of at least 37 people who have died in Erie County, 17 of whom were found outdoors, officials said, although they added that all of them were on board.
Maccarone said the family lost their rock and someone they could call anything.
“My children lost their grandmother, and it was the most important part of her life … to be a good grandmother,” she said. “And now he’s just remembering.”
