Winter storm latest: Snow and ice blanket 26 states leaving more than a million without power
Winter storm power outages ‘could last weeks’ as utility repairs are halted
- An electric company has warned that restoring power after this weekend’s devastating winter storm could take weeks due to catastrophic damage it has caused.
- More than 1 million homes and businesses were without power Sunday afternoon as tree branches and power lines snapped under the weight of ice.
- Tennessee, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas were among the states reporting the highest number of outages, and power crews were forced to abandon repair efforts as conditions got too dangerous to work.
- “Due to life-threatening conditions, Oxford Utilities has made the difficult decision to pull our crews off the road for the night,” the Mississippi utility company said Sunday. “Trees are actively snapping and falling around our linemen while they are in the bucket trucks."
- Tippah Electric Power in Mississippi reported "catastrophic damage," warning that power restoration could take "weeks instead of days" for some customers.