Power out? How are you keeping warm?

Lost power at about 10AM Wednesday in Crestwood. It was still out this morning when I left for work. The condo got cold through the night but was fine with a down comforter and my 2 cats hunkered down on top of that. I hope it's back on by the time I get back. Reading by candlelight was great for Lincoln but sucks for me.

No power since approx 2 am on Wednesday. The hubby and I are cold, but ok. I'm terribly worried about my dogs. How long can they last, and not freeze with no heat? I'm absolutely sick with worry.

Hikes Point Looks like a war zone. All of my big, beautiful trees are broken, or down, and there are power lines down all over. We'll be lucky to get power back in a week to 7 days. Hopefully, we won't get pneumonia.

I didn't realize folks were still without electricity.

Michelle, I know how you feel about the dogs. I always worry in the same way. But then I think about one of the James Herriot stories (true story) about visiting a farm in the dead of a brutal winter, snow a foot deep, and a being startled by a snow drift suddenly exploding. One of the family dogs who preferred to burrow into the snow to sleep rather than joining the other family dog by the fire. I worry about my horses in the same way, and then glance out the window to see them standing outside in a snowstorm, asleep on their feet, when they'd be a whole lot drier and warmer if they'd just walk another ten feet to the barn.

The trees are a real heartbreak. I hate to see that. I hope power's restored soon.

If anyone has a kerosene heater they don't need and would not mind sharing, please let me know. It's down to 35 degrees in my house and it's only getting colder!

We lost power sometime yesterday morning between 5:30 and 6. We, too, went back to sleep hoping that it would magically come back on, but it didn't. We are staying at my mom and dad's house over in Reidlonn where it looks like an icy war zone. They don't have power either, but we've been keeping warm in front of their gas fireplace. Right now, I'm keeping warm at Highland Coffee while I charge my phone and use their wireless. My dad purchased a generator through his company and it arrived this morning so he's busy getting that together.

No power in Shelby County, and it's treacherous getting in and out (finally in my office this afternoon). Thankfully, we have a gas fireplace in our bedroom and can crank it up, invite the cats on the bed and throw an extra blanket over all of us! Not having hot water is a killer, though.

This week's ice storm has caused the largest power outage ever in Kentucky, state officials say.

More than 607,000 Kentucky electric customers are now without power as a result of the massive ice storm, the Kentucky Public Service Commission said in a release.

That exceeds the 600,000 customers who lost power on Sept. 14, 2008, as a result of Hurricane Ike.

We ventured out this afternoon to go to the grocery. Central Park looks like it was hit with an ice bomb. And there are huge trees across some of the streets.

Barring another power failure, my biggest concern at this point is successfully navigating out of a 200 foot-long driveway that remains entombed under snow and ice...after Tuesday's snow it was easy shoveling the driveway, and I could come and go as I pleased -- that was before my house became, "Ice Station Zebra" on Tuesday night-Wednesday morning....the street in our subdivision appears passable, so the challenge is just getting to it...of course once I do, what I encounter beyond the confines of my neighborhood may be another story....

I just got a note from my travel guru saying that all the hotels around town are booked solid......

i'm passing this along, as i just got word from a friend of mine who's husband works at lg&e. that some customers will not be getting power back on until mid february. i myself don't understand this. hopefully people will make arrangements just in case.

I think it's a matter of how many people are helped by a specific repair. Repairing transformers aids large numbers of people. Repairing less important lines (what I think are called secondary lines) may only restore power to a handful of people, as was the case with my gf's place following Ike. Her house was one of three on the street w/o power. As a result, they were at the very bottom of the repair list.*

There's always a steady decrease in how many people are w/o power once the electrical crews are able to get to work. This decrease continues to a certain point - the point at which they are still completing major repairs. It's those last handfuls of people that seem to linger for 1 week, 10 days, or even 2 weeks.

We (all of us) are so reliant on super-quick, on-demand technology that the "manual" nature of restoring power through the repair of phone lines seems quite tedious. When such work is manually-intensive but only beneficial to a handful of people, the case when we are talking about the most secondary of lines, the possibility of extended outages is easier to understand. Still frustrating, for sure. I just hope everyone does not equate extended delays with poor work on the part of the workers. I'd hate to be working their hours and in these conditions.

FWIW, straight line wind damage and ice damage is hell for the utilities companies. Repair is easier to manage when the damage is localized, which is often the case with tornadoes.

* Although they were at the end of the repair list, the wire had to be watched at all times, as it was live. For nearly 10 days, around the clock, contracted help sat in teams of two in a hastly marked vehicle. I think they were making 30+ hourly, with more on weekends and overtime. A nice payrate, and clearly cheaper than a lawsuit. I forgot what these men did on a daily basis (lay copper wire maybe?), but they did not work for LG&E or any other utility. Union support help, I think.

Invest in a pair of lined jeans/pants....I received a pair of jeans lined with Thinsulate for Christmas...they feel a little bulkier vs. normal jeans, but are VERY warm and comfortable when outdoors this time of year (or in a house w/o electricity following an ice storm)....

I think when we hear "607,000 Kentucky electric customers" without power we forget that they're talking about 607,000 households without power. Let's just say a low average per household might be 2.5 people, then we're talking about 1.5 million people in the Commonwealth who don't have electricity today. When you add in all the folks in Indiana and surrounding states, it's pretty staggering.

Last night we hunkered down in front of the gas fireplace, which seems to be maintaining the house at a balmy 54 degrees(I can't wait to see the gas bill next month) and watched American Idol on my battery powered 6" B&W portable that will be obsolete in a few weeks and I made fun of Colleen in her "Bob Cratchet" get up..You know, hat, gloves, scarf, two sweaters ...I made a tasty dinner of penne wtih Italian sausage, peppers and onions on my Coleman stove. Today I took what will be the last hot shower at our home because we have an electic water heater...

On the up-side, I did finish painting the living room because the Club has been closed as well. And tonight we will "tough" it out at my in-laws who live less than a mile from us and have power..All in all it could be much worse...

Just happened across a story that mentioned Mountain Home, Arkansas as one of the worst-hit towns in this thing, which really surprised me. I grew up in Mtn. Home, and it was rare for us to get much snow in winter. Winters are generally pretty mild there. But they got walloped just as bad as we have. And stories suggest many folks won't have power til mid-February. Golly.

We are still out - sleeping is fine, there are so many blankets and quilts on the beds I actually got too warm last night. Getting up and dressed is the hardest. I am going to look for a place to shower and wash hair this afternoon, even though we have hot water, I just cannot wash my hair in this cold. Still no movement on the downed tree in Shelby Park, though the traffic lights on Brook and Floyd are back on this morning-getting closer! The firehouse up the street has a generator out front now (maybe I will tap them for a warm place to shower - I used to work there!! ). While we were out last night (eating, powering up devices) we saw a LOT of trucks form outside power companies. Looks like the troops are still arriving. I have a friend that works for LG&E and he said if the weather holds they will be ok, if it warms enough to get the ice off the lines, so much the better. He said the wires and trees are still snapping from the weight of the ice.

Keep warm everyone!!