Ice storm recovery inches forward as Nashville begins to thaw
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The West Meade neighborhood in Nashville. Photo: courtesy of the Nashville Electric Service
Rising temperatures offered Nashvillians some relief Tuesday as icy roads thawed out and a growing army of linemen slowly restored electricity across the city.
- But several aspects of city life remain on hold, including Metro Schools, which will stay closed through Thursday.
The big picture: The historic ice storm had a catastrophic impact across the region, causing record-breaking damage to the power grid and leaving millions of residents vulnerable to bitter cold.
- Two Davidson County deaths have been tied to dangerous weather, state officials said. Three other people died in West Tennessee.
- Metro police chief John Drake said he was still awaiting details in both Davidson County cases. He said one involved a person in assisted living and the other involved a outdoor fall near Wedgewood Avenue.
By the numbers: More than 232,000 Nashville households lost power at the storm's peak. The Nashville Electric Service had restored electricity to more than 103,000 customers by Tuesday morning, but large swaths of the city are still in the dark.
The damage remains widespread. Bellevue, North Nashville, Hendersonville, Madison, East Nashville and Brentwood were among several high-population neighborhoods still facing major outages, NES reported.
- More than 700 linemen were working across the city Tuesday.
Zoom in: Frustration began to boil over in areas still waiting for help. Many residents in hard-hit neighborhoods reported that their power returned for a few minutes before shutting off again.
- During a media briefing Tuesday, Mayor Freddie O'Connell acknowledged the difficult recovery process.
- "We had simply more ice coverage than we've had in decades," he said. "We are in uniquely challenging circumstances."
What we're watching: Brent Baker, a senior leader at NES, said progress could continue to come in fits and starts.
- He said it can take "several visits" to resolve some stubborn outages that are complicated by the scale of the damage.
- "There is a chance that we'll see [outage] numbers bounce up and down," Baker said. "That's the nature of restoration and getting those lines to hold."
Reality check: While the thaw is good news for roadwork and linemen, it could lead to new problems with the city water system.
- Metro Water Services has already been pummeled with reports of main breaks, but authorities warned more will follow as ice melts.
- Residents can report outages over the phone at 615-862-4600.