Nearly half of Nashville without power during ice storm
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A tree bends under the weight of ice from the overnight storm in Nashville. Photo: Nate Rau/Axios
Nashville is facing an unprecedented power outage with nearly half of its residents without electricity following an overnight ice storm Sunday.
The big picture: In neighborhoods across the city, frozen rain caused trees to snap and take out power lines. The Nashville Electric Service warns outages could "span over days or longer."
State of play: There were more than 230,000 NES customers without power at one point on Sunday afternoon. For context, NES has nearly 470,000 total customers.
Threat level: The forecast called for a major cold front and gusty winds, which could topple tree and take out more power lines.
- Additional lineworkers are scrambling to Nashville to help.
The latest: NES said crews have been operating in continuous rotations since Saturday and will continue to work 14- to 16-hour shifts.
What we're watching: The cold front is expected to drop temperatures into the teens Monday. The wind chill will make it feel even colder.
- Metro officials expressed concerns for residents dealing with power outages as frigid temperatures set in.
What he's saying: Mayor Freddie O'Connell declared a state of emergency, which puts first responders, the transportation department and other agencies at full-tilt until the storm response is in hand.
- He encouraged residents to stay off roads except in cases of emergency. The city also opened warming shelters at fire halls, police precincts and community centers for residents to get out of the cold.
- "Having grown up in Nashville, I can't remember an ice event of this magnitude in terms of impact," O'Connell said during a media update Sunday.
- An NES official said the derecho storm in May 2020 left about 200,000 customers without power, making this ice storm a recent record-setter for outages.
By the numbers: NES announced it had 120 of its own lineworkers and 40 contract lineworkers in the field Sunday morning.
- Another 155 lineworkers were scheduled to begin arriving Sunday night.
With its phone line overburdened by so many calls, NES encouraged residents to report outages through its online map.
Editor's note: This story has been updated with additional information about the city's storm response.