Kentucky's 2009 Winter Ice Storm: How I Survived

In January 2009, the winter ice storm that swept Kentucky brought devastation to my small rural town. The wooded knobs we watch change with the seasons looked surreal for a moment as they glittered with winter white ice; however, the falling tree tops and limbs quickly transformed our beautiful hillsides to ragged, broken and ominous versions of their former selves. Roads became nearly impassable with ice, falling trees and debris. Broken lines took out power in the area for over two weeks at some homes and also took out land line phones.

Newspapers told of families who were hospitalized of carbon monoxide poisoning after trying to heat their homes with outdoor grills. Neighbors who had purchased one of the last generators available in local stores complained of price gouging. Some families left their homes to seek shelter at a local school.

My home, built in the nineties, lacked a heat source without electricity. Somehow, my Dad managed to transport my daughters and me to my parents' home some five miles away. Fortunately, my parents made use of a wood burning stove that provided us warmth, allowed us to heat water for baths, and gave us a way to cook meals. At night, we found ourselves huddled around oil burning lamps and candles to play cards. The worst of the situation came the one day we ran out of water, as the water department's generators froze and the pumps failed. Water was quickly restored, though. We were lucky.

Still, the roads made returning to work right away too dangerous. A neighbor, who works for the county, reported his crew working double shifts for days cleaning the roads. They needed to make the roads passable enough that electric company employees could travel to make repairs; however, their efforts were in vain. As soon as a lane was cleared, additional limbs would fall behind them.

After a time, I braved the roads to make the fifty-mile drive to work. The lack of electricity necessitated crawling out of bed early enough to heat a few pans of water so that I could bathe. The clothes I wore came from the back of the closet as I could not wash the laundry. My hair looked unkempt without the use of a hairdryer, but at least I showed up for work. Stress got the best of me on day eleven, and I ran out of gas, ironically beside a gas station, on the way to work. Until someone stopped to help, I sat on the side of the road and cried, unable to determine why my car died or why it would not start again.

After two weeks, my power was finally restored and my daughters and I returned home. Life returned to order. I look back now and remember spending time with family without the distractions of television, phones and computers. I remember the struggles, too. And I remember the kindness of the gentleman who pushed my car.