Buffalo, N.Y. ? The Buffalo area lay all but paralyzed Friday after a record-breaking early snowstorm whited-out the brilliant colors of fall, burying pumpkins and apples and catching this city world-famous for its wintry weather flat-footed.

The heavy, wet snow snapped tree limbs all over western New York, leaving some 392,000 homes and businesses without power.

At least three deaths were blamed on the storm, and a state of emergency was in effect in four counties, banning nonessential travel.

Branches and power lines lay draped across cars and houses, and normally busy downtown streets were still, blanketed by up to 2 feet of snow.

“I thought it was kind of pretty but eerie,” said Ann Goff, who walked to her job at a Buffalo supermarket in the middle of the night. “It was scary listening to the cracking of the branches.”

The snow, delivered in a fury of thunder and lightning, blanketed Buffalo and surrounding areas Thursday night and early Friday. A 105-mile stretch of the New York State Thruway was closed for hours, and food and water had to be delivered by snowmobile to stranded motorists until roads reopened about 5 p.m. Friday.

Residents walk the tree-strewn street in Snyder, N.Y. Up to 2 feet of snow from an extraordinary fall storm closed roads, cut power to some 350,000 customers and left parts of western New York paralyzed as officials banned driving in the region Friday.

Many municipal trucks still were working to remove leaves Thursday and did not have plows attached when the surprise storm hit.

Some residents in the Buffalo suburb of Amherst were without water Friday after a water pumping station failed in the storm, County Executive Joel Giambra said. Gov. George Pataki said a generator was being brought from Albany to power the station.

Dr. Anthony Billittier, the Erie County health commissioner, said some hospitals were on emergency power and facing water shortages.

Erie County authorities said two people, including an off-duty state trooper, died in traffic accidents, and one person died after being hit by a falling tree limb while shoveling snow.

On Thursday, 8.6 inches of snow fell – the snowiest October day in Buffalo in the 137-year history of the weather service. The record lasted for all of one day, as a foot of snow fell early Friday. The previous record was 6 inches, set on Oct. 31, 1917.