Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Ice Storm Moves into Kentucky, Power is Being Cut

BREAKING WEATHER NEWS: A Killer Ice Storm Moves into Kentucky where Power is Getting Cut to Thousands.

Severe icing that prompted Oklahoma's Governor Henry to declare a state of emergency on Monday for all 77 counties of Oklahoma spread northeast over the mid-Mississippi to Kentucky overnight. In Oklahoma City on Monday, EMS officials reported that ambulances were stretched thin due to the number of calls of accidents and people falling on the ice. Places from Abilene, Texas, through Cape Girardeau, Mo., and areas south of Louisville are in the thick of a nasty freezing rain, which is expected to continue throughout the day. Power has already been cut to thousands from Oklahoma through northern Arkansas to Kentucky this morning.

Between 0.25 of an inch to over 1 inch of ice has fallen from southern Missouri and northern Arkansas into Kentucky. The weight of ice buildup is causing tree limbs and power lines to be downed. Thousands are without power this morning from northern Arkansas to Kentucky and could be without power for weeks.

Snow and sleet are falling along the the Ohio River Valley, including in Louisville, where precipitation started as freezing rain around midnight. Roads will be very slick and dangerous in this corridor with snow falling on top of ice. Accumulations of snow and sleet have already reached between 1-3 inches in parts of southern Illinois.