Tahlequah Daily Press

Features

January 30, 2009

Nearly 7,000 still in the dark

The clean-up effort is well under way, and as the melting begins, even more power outages could be in the forecast.

TAHLEQUAH DAILY PRESS — Dense freezing fog moved into Cherokee County Thursday evening, but it was not expected to hang around long as the thawing process continues today.

Temperatures are expected to top out around 50 degrees today and climb even higher during the weekend. The thaw is welcome news for county residents who have been in a deep freeze for much of the week.

The vestiges of the ice storm are still being felt, as 6,800 Lake Region Electric Cooperative members were still without power Thursday evening. Two main feeder lines were still out of service.

LREC CEO Hamid Vahdatipour warned that more customers may lose power as ice melts off trees and power lines.

“[Wednesday] the icy roads caused major delays in the restoration process,” he said. “We’re estimating restoration efforts may last through the middle of next week.”

The cooperative initially had 14 main feeders without service but was able to restore nine of them Thursday.

The Oklahoma Emergency Management Web site was reporting Thursday night that Municipal Electrical Systems of Oklahoma had 750 outages in Tahlequah. Ice accumulations of more than an inch were reported on trees and power lines. LREC initially received notification of power outages at 7:30 a.m. Tuesday, and service has been interrupted for more than 12,500 members.

Schools across the county remained closed today. Cherokee County offices opened late Thursday, but were expected to operate under normal hours today, as were Cherokee Nation tribal offices. The United Keetoowah Band offices were expected to remain closed Friday because their Web site indicates they close on days Tahlequah Public Schools close for inclement weather.

Northeastern State University classes resumed at noon Thursday, and maintenance crews were busy clearing sidewalks of ice and removing tree limbs from campus.

Scott Pettus, public information officer for Tahlequah-Cherokee County Emergency Management, said an American Red Cross shelter continues to house residents at the First United Methodist Church Activities Building. Other shelters have been set up at Cookson and Tailholt.

Pettus said generators are operational at the Chicken Creek Rural Water Co. Generators have also been sought for Welling Rural Water District.

Emergency service officials are telling people in the rural districts who have been without water that they should boil their water for the next several days to make certain the systems have been stabilized.

City and county road crews are continuing to clear roadways of brush and ice. Street Commissioner Mike Corn said City Cemetery Supervisor Richard Smith and his employees have assisted the Street Department.

District 3 Commissioner Mike Ballard has offered thanks to rural fire departments as the job of clearing debris continues. District 1 Commissioner Doug Hubbard said much of the damage in his district is east of State Highway 82 and along the Illinois River. He said all three districts have logged many man-hours since the storm hit the county.

Baptist Disaster Relief chainsaw crews are scheduled to arrive in the area tomorrow to begin cleanup.

Crews will stage at the First Baptist Church in Tahlequah.

Cleanup will be classified in three levels, with Level 1 being trees on houses or power lines; Level 2, trees blocking driveways and other areas; and Level 3, miscellaneous tree removal.

Pettus said those wanting to be placed on a list to be contacted by the disaster relief crews may call 2-1-1 or the Tahlequah-Cherokee County Emergency Management Agency at 456-2894.

Text Only
Features
  • Be careful when floating your boat

    With a countless number of families expected to enjoy this Memorial Day weekend at the lake or in swimming pools, The National Safe Boating Council Inc. and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are urging everyone to step up their safety awareness while in and around a water environment.

    May 23, 2012

  • Glenn liked Tahlequah’s ‘weirdness’

    For Eddie Glenn, playing music at the 2000 Cherokee Medal of Honor awards and having James Earl Jones compliment his singing voice is the memory of a lifetime.

    May 22, 2012

  • Summer chock-full of blockbusters

    There is no season quite like summer. School is out, baseball season is in full swing, Tenkiller Lake is full of boaters, the Illinois River is ripe for floating, and soon, the summer blockbusters will hit the theaters.

    May 16, 2012

  • Tanning today could mean trouble later

    Questioning, and sometimes even ignoring, authority is a hallmark of youth, and can often teach valuable life lessons.

    May 16, 2012

  • ra AmericanLegion.tif Veterans groups have busy schedules

    Cherokee County boasts several active veterans organizations, with overlapping members – and some of them are rising to prestigious positions.

    May 9, 2012 1 Photo

  • Volunteering gives Smith skills, confidence

    Volunteering has taught Tonya Smith to use power tools and given her confidence.

    May 8, 2012

  • Art a sublime experience for Emerson

    Growing up in Tahlequah, Judith Emerson didn’t imagine she’d return as an artist and writer. But she has – after living in New York, raising her daughter and traveling.

    May 1, 2012

  • Class teaches cultural tradition

    As any good fashionista knows, a leather purse is a wardrobe staple. But leather purses were first crafter for functionality, rather than fashion.

    April 30, 2012

  • Expert gives program on shell mounds

    University of Oklahoma’s Department of Anthropology assistant professor Dr. Asa Randall has spent years studying archaic shell mounds, particularly those along the St. Johns River in Florida.

    April 30, 2012

  • Library kicks off new Living Green series

    These days, more and more people want to know where their food comes from, and many prefer a source close to home.

    April 23, 2012

Poll

What do you plan to do over the Memorial Day weekend?

Go to Lake Tenkiller or Lake Fort Gibson.
Go to the Illinois River.
Attend ceremonies to honor veterans.
Spend time at home with family and/or friends.
Go out of town with family and/or friends.
A combination of the above.
None of the above.
     View Results
Press Sports Twitter Updates
Follow us on twitter
Follow me on Twitter
AP Video
Raw Video: 19 Dead in Qatar Shopping Mall Fire Beryl Makes Landfall on Florida Coast Service Dogs Help Wash. Soldiers Battling PTSD Raw Video: Heckler Bursts in on Blair Testimony Japan Farmers Plant, Seek Radiation-free Rice UN Blames Syrian Forces for Shelling Houla Raw Video: Gay Protest Blocked in Moscow Vatican in Chaos After Butler Arrested for Leaks Jimmy Carter Endorses Egypt's Election Results Biden Addresses West Point Graduating Class Dozens of Children Killed in New Syria Attack Raw Video: Activists Allege Massacre in Syria NJ Man Charged With Murder in Death of Patz Support, Fun for Kids of Fallen Soldiers at Camp Fugitive Penguin Caught, Returned to Aquarium 50 Years Later, Underground Fire Still Burning Light Show Transforms Sydney Opera House Raw Video: Unruly Passenger Restrained in Miami Raw Video: Robber Uses Drive-thru Window Raw Video: Dragon Arrives at Space Station
Stocks
Bedlam