Winter Storm — Scott, Missouri

2009-01-26 to 2009-01-28 · Scott, Missouri

Wider weather episode

This prolonged, major winter storm was termed the worst in decades for southeast Missouri. The storm dumped 6 to 10 inches of sleet and snow along and north of a line from Van Buren through Greenville to Cape Girardeau. This resulted in very difficult driving conditions along with at least two dozen roof collapses. South of that line, at least one inch of ice accumulated. Locally 1.5 to 2 inches of ice accumulated south of a line from Poplar Bluff to Dexter to Benton. This resulted in catastrophic damage to trees, power lines, and utility poles in places such as Dexter, Sikeston, Charleston, and New Madrid. A utility company serving much of the region reported this was the most damaging event in the history of the company. More than 145 miles of high-voltage transmission lines were down in that company's area alone. A utility manager stated that ice accumulation made high voltage lines five inches in diameter. This was sufficient to bring down the two-pole structures with crossarms that carry transmission lines. At least 6,000 power poles in southeast Missouri were replaced after being snapped or downed. One utility company briefed the governor that restoration of its facilities would cost 80 million dollars. Nearly 100 percent of residents lost power. Power was restored to most residents of cities and larger towns in 5 to 9 days, but the last rural residents went three weeks without power. Both cell and landline phone services were out for a few days in many places. Downed trees and limbs blocked numerous roads. Thirteen state roads were closed one week after the storm. Tree limbs landed on vehicles and punctured some house roofs. In the hardest hit areas from Charleston to Sikeston to Dexter, very few trees were not damaged. A few fatalities were indirectly caused by the storm. In New Madrid County, a woman and her teenage daughter died of apparent carbon monoxide poisoning from a gas-powered generator in the garage. In Advance, a 78-year-old man perished in a house fire likely started by an alternative heat or light source. No accurate count of storm-related injuries was maintained. However, Scott County alone recorded 20 cases of serious carbon monoxide poisoning. Scott County reported one person very seriously injured while clearing debris. A number of people throughout the region were injured in slips and falls. The National Guard assisted local and state agencies with recovery efforts, including door-to-door welfare checks in rural areas. Emergency shelters were opened for those without heat. Water supplies were interrupted in some towns where water towers could not be replenished by pumps. Gas was difficult to find for a few days due to a combination of power outages and high demand. A dusk-to-dawn curfew was imposed for a few days in some cities, including Dexter and Sikeston. Some structure fires were sparked by alternative heating, lighting, and cooking devices. Numerous traffic accidents occurred during the first several hours of the storm, sending several people to medical clinics. An aluminum plant in New Madrid suffered severe damage when the aluminum being processed cooled due to the power outage. Production was reduced by 75 percent, and full production was not expected to resume for up to a year.

Heavy snow and sleet were the main precipitation types north and west of a line from Poplar Bluff to Cape Girardeau. The weight of the sleet and snow caused at least two dozen building collapses. In Wayne County, several buildings collapsed under the weight of the sleet and snow. A mill building collapsed near Patterson. Serious damage occurred at a marina near Clearwater Dam, where two boats were damaged. At Piedmont, a portion of a manufacturing warehouse and a law office building both collapsed. Elsewhere in Wayne County, a house and a storage building collapsed. Several metal buildings and carports collapsed in northern Stoddard County. In Cape Girardeau, the roof of a manufacturing company collapsed, and a large awning took down parts of the brick facade of a commercial building. Six to eight other buildings in Cape Girardeau County collapsed. No injuries were reported, but some animals were lost under a collapsed barn. A number of roofs caved in across Perry County, Carter County, and northern Scott County. A pallet mill and a manufacturing company sustained heavy losses in Carter County. The majority of structures damaged or destroyed in Carter County were metal buildings, barns, and sheds. In Carter County, National Guard troops assisted local first responders in distributing water and MRE's to those stranded in their houses. Law enforcement officials were forced to patrol in their personal four-wheel drive vehicles, since roads were not passable to cars. Phone service was disrupted in some areas.

An area of low pressure formed along the Gulf Coast, then tracked slowly east-northeast. High pressure remained anchored west of the Great Lakes, keeping a cold northeast wind flow in place in the lowest levels of the atmosphere. Copious amounts of moisture moved up from the southwest and overrode the cold air in the low levels. This moisture interacted with a couple of disturbances in the upper levels of the atmosphere moving from west to east across the region.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 148841. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.