<img class="styles__noscript__2rw2y" src="https://s.w-x.co/util/image/w/ap_20060579271307.jpg?v=at&w=485&h=273" srcset="https://s.w-x.co/util/image/w/ap_20060579271307.jpg?v=at&w=485&h=273 400w, https://s.w-x.co/util/image/w/ap_20060579271307.jpg?v=ap&w=980&h=551 800w" > 1 of 12 A house along Hoover Beach is covered by ice from high winds and from the waves from Lake Erie, Saturday, Feb. 29, 2020, in Hamburg N.Y. Blowing snow has fallen around the state since Thursday, though the heaviest snowfall was concentrated in largely rural areas east of Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. (AP Photo/Jeffrey T. Barnes)

The surreal landscape of Hamburg, New York, last week can be seen in the slideshow above: homes completely encased in ice, doors and windows sealed, trees turned white by icicles.

The homes along Lake Erie received more than 48 hours of winds whipping at 40 to 60 mph along the shoreline, creating huge waves that froze the instant they hit the coastal structures.

While it's not a first in Hamburg, local Ed Mis told CNN that it's never been quite this dramatic. "It's dark on the inside of my house. It can be a little eerie, a little frightening," he said.

Winter weather expert Tom Niziol said that Lake Erie typically has significant ice cover this time of year, which prevents the waves from getting as big as they were last week. But the lake currently has no ice coverage on the eastern end.

"Temperatures in the low to mid-20s, all that spray that comes up and hits the buildings is going to freeze and make it a giant icicle," Niziol explained .

The ice has melted since Friday, allowing residents to once again leave their homes, but creating more nightmares for homeowners. Flooding and damage has been left behind, and the town is working to help the neighborhood get a FEMA pre-hazard mitigation grant, according to WTHR.com. Plans for the grant include an offshore wall that could hopefully keep these homes from becoming igloos again in the future.