Kentucky Ice Storm 2009: The Effect of a Deadly Storm

It was not an ordinary snowfall of the winter season. Instead, a brutal ice storm hit nearly all parts of the state and left about 700,000 people without power for over four days after the deadly storm.

Normally the first snow of the season is welcomed by one and all. Kids enjoy playing with snow balls along with their parents too. The atmosphere turns into a happier one where everybody takes part in the snow game for pleasure. Soon after, when the snow fall becomes continuous, it gets unmanageable and parents or adults feel the pressure of the season. The turning of snow into ice creates mammoth problem to the inhabitants and they confront extra difficulty in day to day life.

The people of Kentucky are accustomed with the ferocity of ice storms due to their past experience in facing such problems. But this time in the last week of January 2009, the strike of the ice storm was exceptional and worst in nature. The consequences bore tragic results. Life came to a halt for everyone of them. Residents suffered without power for four long days and some were even without water for many days. People ran for emergency shelters to take refuge. Authorities responsible for utility services battled hard in the most unfair conditions to restore power and rebuild the utility framework from the ground level.

The state of Kentucky witnessed the biggest natural catastrophe in the history. Trees broke down cutting off power lines making it more difficult for utility service teams to render proper help. The entire communication system was in jeopardy creating acute misunderstanding among people for the want of information. Frustration gripped the entire community and some where, people lost nerves owing to the calamity. The drive ways were icy and treacherous and people could not make easy movements. Schools and colleges remained suspended for the entire week. With telephones and televisions out of work, people depended for updates through radios. Weather forecasts continued cautioning the public for further storms.

Self help groups started cleaning debris from affected place to renew normalcy in life of the inhabitants. Rescue workers brought in emergency generators to help the people in hardest hit localities. The ghastly storm took seven precious lives and left relatives with incredible pain. All the happenings took place in subzero temperature. Normal rescue endeavors were not easy to perform by volunteers. Such organizations offered more than a thousand meals for the people in trouble. The freezing cold outside made it more complicated for the aged and the sick, who suffered more than others.

Gradually the ice started melting but the proof of the catastrophe remained evident in the scenes where trees were uprooted and fell on houses and communication towers or power lines. The damage was beyond expectation. The recovery team had been working till date to bring back life into its normal condition but how much success they get is a mere speculation.

Such ice storms have a deep impact on the life style of every citizen of the affected state. The amount of damage that this frozen water can do, has been demonstrated time and again by nature. Hundreds and thousands become homeless, power failure for so many days bring everything to a helpless stop. It takes a considerable time and effort for the state government and the authorities concerned to bring life to normal. A large amount of money and resources are spent to settle down the lives of the affected people. In spite of all the efforts the life never gets back to its normal form for years.

Sources :

Kentucky Ice Storm 2009. http://www.slideshare.net/cakell01/kentucky-ice-storm-2009

Kentucky National Guard goes door-to-door to deliver aid. http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/weather/01/31/winter.weather/

National Guard mobilized in Kentucky ice storm aftermath. http://en.wikinews.org/wiki/National_Guard_mobilized_in_Kentucky_ice_storm_aftermath

Kentucky's Ice Storm Worse in Aftermath. http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1876304,00.html

400K still without power after deadly ice storm. http://www.usatoday.com/weather/storms/winter/2009-01-31-ice-storm_N.htm

Lexington Kentucky Ice Storm 2009. http://www.sitecreations.com/blog/2009/01/lexington-kentucky-ice-storm-2009.html