Ice Storm in Sevier, Arkansas

After trying to recover from an ice storm two week earlier in the month, another even more devastating ice storm struck all of southwest Arkansas. Freezing rain resulted in ice accumulations ranging from 1/4 inch to as much as 6 inches. After taking a tour of the state, the Governor of Arkansas used words such as apocalyptic and cataclysmic to describe the damage. Power was knocked out across all of southwest Arkansas with nearly 300,000 homes and business without power due to thousands of trees and 2500 power poles either broken or toppled. Utility crews from 23 different states were summoned to help repair lines. Some residents were without power as late as the middle of January 2001.