January Ice Storm hits Overland

Friday night freezing rain moved in to give the St. Louis area a bit of a re-run. Everything iced over, tree branches fell and the power went out for many. The storm didn't stop there. Saturday brought more freezing ran, more ice, and more trouble to our area. Now Sunday looks like it might do the same.

The power went out for nearly 160,000 in the St. Louis area (as of 11:00am, Jan 14th, 2006). In the 63114 zip code, the power was out for over 5000 residents (as of 11:00am, Jan 14th, 2006). The following is AmerenUE's Outage map:

For a full view of the outage map click here

For More information on outages you can visit Ameren's Homepage, or call them at (314)342-1000 (or (800) 552-7583 if outside the St. Louis area). They also have an Outage FAQ and a Storm Response FAQ online.

If there are power lines down in your neighborhood DO NOT assume they are off. The lack of sparks and the like means nothing. DO NOT touch a downed power line for any reason. If you have lines down call AmerenUE at: (314) 342-1000, and also call your local police and fire departments so that they can secure the area around the downed wires (For downed lines in Overland, Missouri call Overland PD at: (314) 428-1212 ). Touching downed power lines could easily make you the "star" of an upcoming funeral. Stay away from them.

If your power is out make sure to contact AmerenUE at (314) 342-1000 to let them know. Don't assume they already know your situation.

For those considering using propane heaters, portable generators and the like remember, most of these devices are not designed for indoor use. They need to be properly vented and they need to be monitored. Deadly Carbon Monoxide poisoning and Fires can result from unsafe use.

If you have decided to go stay with someone else due to your power being out remember the water lines your house. If the temperatures drop too far in your home your waterlines can freeze and rupture as it warms up later. This could leave you with a huge mess when you return. Turning off the water to your house and draining the lines is likely the best option.

It seems like my block weathered the storm fairly well so far. There are some sizable trees down, but it appears that everyone has power and few seem to have home damage. It is not over yet as there have been rumors of more ice and possibly increased winds to follow (check out the latest weather information from Fox 2 News here), but for this moment at least I took a short breather and thought I'd share a few pictures:

My Block on Ice, shaken, not stirred.

That one will take me awhile to clean up.

Lucky Break

As far as I can tell so far we thankfully have no roof damage .

I'm headed up to the attic to double check after I post this though.

Close Call.

I will have to repair the Gutter,

but it could have been the roof.

Maybe my procrastination with the Christmas lights saved us

(I know, my wife isn't buyin' that either).

What's amazing is how beautiful it all can be
(when it is not causing power outages, blocking roads,
tearing up roofs,or causing other destruction).

If you have any information you would like to see shared here please contact me at: overlandsailor@aol.com, or just add you comments to this post. Otherwise, keep an eye out for neighbors in need and do what you can, where you can.