Sunday, December 20, 2009
Old Man Winter Wallops Kentucky
KENTUCKY....
For parts of Kentucky, Old Man Winter brought an early white Christmas beginning Friday and running through the weekend.
On Saturday, Governor Steve Beshear declared a state of emergency when as much as 16 inches of snow fell in some places in Eastern Kentucky, causing heavy, wet snow toppled trees and downed power lines to leave 107,000 homes without power. Sunday afternoon, that number was down to about 87,000 in 26 counties.
Beshear toured eastern Kentucky Sunday to assess the damage caused by the winter storm, making stops in Pike, Letcher and Perry counties. He vowed his support while promising to work hard to try to restore power in time for families to return to their homes by Christmas. Beshear says his administration is tapping all its resources to address the needs of those impacted and will continue to do so until this disaster is resolved.
The Lexington area received less than an inch of snow by Saturday night, but areas east of Interstate 75 were hit much harder.Officials say the heaviest snow fell around Pikeville, Manchester and Jackson. In Pike County, some places received a foot of snow, leaving utility crews working furiously to restore power to 35,000 residents. The office of Pike County Judge-Executive Wayne T. Rutherford said the number of people without power was down to about 29,000 in the county by Saturday evening, and, as of mid-afternoon Sunday, 23,851 houses in Pike County remained without power.
Water was being distributed to roughly 10,000 people without running water, but the number was expected to increase.
Red Cross officials set up shelters at Belfry High School and Pike Central High School in Pike County. The National Guard was deployed to the area to assist with helping clear trees and restoring power. The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet says, although state road crews and contractors were mobilized to plow roads, and continued plowing even through the nights, most interstates and main highways were cleared, but fallen trees still blocked some roads in Pike, Knott, Breathitt and Perry counties. In Pike County, road crews were hampered by the loss of power at their maintenance buildings, but their efforts were not stopped.
For parts of Kentucky, Old Man Winter brought an early white Christmas beginning Friday and running through the weekend.
On Saturday, Governor Steve Beshear declared a state of emergency when as much as 16 inches of snow fell in some places in Eastern Kentucky, causing heavy, wet snow toppled trees and downed power lines to leave 107,000 homes without power. Sunday afternoon, that number was down to about 87,000 in 26 counties.
Beshear toured eastern Kentucky Sunday to assess the damage caused by the winter storm, making stops in Pike, Letcher and Perry counties. He vowed his support while promising to work hard to try to restore power in time for families to return to their homes by Christmas. Beshear says his administration is tapping all its resources to address the needs of those impacted and will continue to do so until this disaster is resolved.
The Lexington area received less than an inch of snow by Saturday night, but areas east of Interstate 75 were hit much harder.Officials say the heaviest snow fell around Pikeville, Manchester and Jackson. In Pike County, some places received a foot of snow, leaving utility crews working furiously to restore power to 35,000 residents. The office of Pike County Judge-Executive Wayne T. Rutherford said the number of people without power was down to about 29,000 in the county by Saturday evening, and, as of mid-afternoon Sunday, 23,851 houses in Pike County remained without power.
Water was being distributed to roughly 10,000 people without running water, but the number was expected to increase.
Red Cross officials set up shelters at Belfry High School and Pike Central High School in Pike County. The National Guard was deployed to the area to assist with helping clear trees and restoring power. The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet says, although state road crews and contractors were mobilized to plow roads, and continued plowing even through the nights, most interstates and main highways were cleared, but fallen trees still blocked some roads in Pike, Knott, Breathitt and Perry counties. In Pike County, road crews were hampered by the loss of power at their maintenance buildings, but their efforts were not stopped.
# posted by Homer Owens @ 8:06 PM 
