The death toll from the earthquake now stands at 44, but about twice that number are said to have died as a result of the Great Freeze gripping the Eastern Seaboard of the US: one victim was Bell Atlantic Corp, which said it is delaying release of its fourth quarter results until today because of the weather-related state of emergency in Pennsylvania; it said earlier that it is advising its Pennsylvania customers that they may experience delayed dial tone as a result of heavy calling volumes triggered by the sub-zero temperatures – with news of power cuts and office closings, people are inclined to reach for their telephones to communicate, resulting in uncommonly heavy demand that puts an unusual strain on the telephone network, it says.
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