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1.3m US residents wait for power after storm
Source: Agencies |
January 30, 2009, Friday
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STORM-BATTERED residents of several southern US states hunkered down in frigid homes and shelters Thursday, expecting to spend at least a week without power and waiting in long lines to buy generators, firewood, groceries and bottled water.
Utility companies in Missouri, Kentucky, Ohio, Arkansas and West Virginia warned that the estimated 1.3 million people left in the dark by an ice storm wouldn't have power back before Saturday at the earliest, and at worst, as late as mid-February.
Utility crews found themselves up against roads blocked by ice-caked power lines, downed trees and other debris. Help from around the country was arriving in convoys to assist the states with the worst outages. But with so many homes and businesses in the dark -- there were more than 600,000 across Kentucky alone -- the effort is still expected to take days, if not weeks.
In Paducah, Kentucky residents had trouble finding fuel they could use to keep themselves warm.
"We got food, but I'm just worried about staying warm," said, Miranda Brittan, adding she was frustrated by the search for supplies.
"By the time you hear about a place that's open they're out when you get there," she said.
Since the storm began Monday, the weather has been blamed for at least 27 deaths, including six in Texas, four in Arkansas, three in Virginia, six in Missouri, two in Oklahoma, two in Indiana, two in West Virginia and one each in Ohio and Kentucky. Emergency officials feared that toll could rise if people stay in their homes without power for too long, because improper use of generators can cause carbon monoxide poisoning.
Utility companies in Missouri, Kentucky, Ohio, Arkansas and West Virginia warned that the estimated 1.3 million people left in the dark by an ice storm wouldn't have power back before Saturday at the earliest, and at worst, as late as mid-February.
Utility crews found themselves up against roads blocked by ice-caked power lines, downed trees and other debris. Help from around the country was arriving in convoys to assist the states with the worst outages. But with so many homes and businesses in the dark -- there were more than 600,000 across Kentucky alone -- the effort is still expected to take days, if not weeks.
In Paducah, Kentucky residents had trouble finding fuel they could use to keep themselves warm.
"We got food, but I'm just worried about staying warm," said, Miranda Brittan, adding she was frustrated by the search for supplies.
"By the time you hear about a place that's open they're out when you get there," she said.
Since the storm began Monday, the weather has been blamed for at least 27 deaths, including six in Texas, four in Arkansas, three in Virginia, six in Missouri, two in Oklahoma, two in Indiana, two in West Virginia and one each in Ohio and Kentucky. Emergency officials feared that toll could rise if people stay in their homes without power for too long, because improper use of generators can cause carbon monoxide poisoning.
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