Winter storm pulls away after dumping heavy snow; frigid air won't budge | Live updates

The extreme cold weather on Saturday may have played a role in the deaths of five people in New York City.

A 67-year-old man was found unresponsive in Manhattan on 3rd Avenue near East 35th Street, along with a woman and a man in Brooklyn at separate locations.

An unidentified man was found on Hilburn Avenue in Queens and another unidentified man was found on 69th Street and 1st Avenue in Manhattan.

The bodies were all discovered Saturday morning and pronounced dead by EMS on the scene.

The medical examiner will determine the official causes of death but officials suspect the cold may have contributed.

New York City on Saturday was under a Cold Weather Advisory, with temperatures only reaching the teens and wind chills falling below zero ahead of a winter storm arriving Sunday.

The New York skyline will be swirling in snowflakes on Sunday as a massive winter storm descends on Gotham. On Saturday, New Yorkers will be getting a towering preview of the snowstorm with a spectacular snowfall light display atop the Empire State Building.

The evening show is being described as a "never-before-seen snowfall effect."

We'll have video of the spectacle here later on our winter storm blog.

Airlines have canceled thousands of flights across the country with many carriers issuing travel waivers to customers.

Officials are warning that some airports could be closed on Sunday for several hours.

American Airlines and Delta Airlines are both waiving rebooking fees for affected customers. United Airlines is issuing travel waivers for impacted cities for fliers who bought tickets on or before January 20th to rebook without a fee

ABC News' Andrew Dymburt reports from Newark Liberty International Airport on the winter storm's impact on flights.

Andrew Dymburt reports from Newark Airport.

The demand for last-minute food items on Friday across NYC resembled the wait to get on an adult ride at an amusement park.

The line at Trader Joe's, however, was not amusing at all.

Anthony Carlo has more from Manhattan.

The madhouse that is food shopping before the snowstorm left people who had no intention of panic buying empty-handed.

"It's been ransacked. Really," one shopper said.

Many of the shelves across stores in the city are empty as people hustle to get what they need.

Anthony Carlo has the latest on the preparations in New York City.