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TUESDAY, February 23, 2021 / Vol. 7 Issue 8 / 75 cents
Winter storm Uri slams Van Buren County by Warren Johnson
Assessor Emma Smiley laying books to dry Thursday morning.
Some referred to it as Once in a Generation. Old Man Winter, known as winter storm Uri, plummeted much of the country into the deep freeze last week, leaving roughly 150 million Americans under winter storm warnings. Temperatures fell in Van Buren County to lows many residents have not experienced in their lifetime. David Haughenbury, Sr. reported a temperature of nine below zero on Tuesday morning in Simlock Acres, with the Clinton Airport as the official reporting station concurring. One citizen recalled the last time he recorded the mercury dipping close to this
was thirty-two years ago during the winter of 1989. He remembered as a kid hearing his elders talking about a bitterly cold winter near the turn of the twentieth century when temperatures fell into double digits below zero. The deep freeze left many frozen water pipes in the county for the first time in decades, even as residents left faucets dripping. More than a foot of snow fell over two days, bringing travel to a standstill, with four-wheel drive trucks, utility, and snowplows being the lone vehicles on the roads for a time. Reports came in about a six-wheel-drive motor grader and 4X4's sliding off the road-
bed and requiring assistance to get out of the ditches. Threats of rolling power outages compounded the bitterly cold weather, frozen pipes, and cabin fever, leaving many discouraged. A glimmer of light shined through between the two snow events when the sun made an appearance. Although well below freezing, the radiant heat allowed water pipes, streets, and highways to begin thawing. The bright skies afforded the Voice the ability to travel to the print shop and pick up last week's edition with only a slight delay getting it to the post office. By Friday, we were able to stock all of our outside news
racks countywide. The winter storm event left snow-coated sand as far south as the Gulf Coast beaches and allowed El Paso, Texas, children to enjoy sledding. Reports came in that some parts of West Texas were colder on Monday than Anchorage, Alaska. I remember the temperature being so cold as a kid in the 1980s that it hurt to be outside. Last week after only being out for five minutes, I relived the experience. Some sensations are better as memories. To borrow the title from Jeff Stansbery's front-page article two weeks ago, It's still cold, and it's still winter. Hopefully, the worst of it is behind us.
A record room at the Courthouse Annex that flooded on Thursday morning.
Temperature plummets and pipes burst at Courthouse Annex by Warren Johnson
On Thursday morning, the County Judge's administrative assistant, Denice Hill, was the first person to arrive on the job at the courthouse annex. Denice was greeted by what she described as the sound of a waterfall. Hill stated, "Water was rolling down the hall and looked like a river as it made the corner and flowed down the ramp before exiting the building and rolling across the parking lot." A three-quarterinch water main in the ceiling burst in the overnight hours between Wednesday night and Thursday morning, flooding a record room and leaving a wake of fiberglass insulation, ceiling tiles, and drywall scattered along the path of the water flow. County offices had been closed due to inclement weather in the days leading up to the calam-
ity; however, County Judge Dale James had been at the annex daily. He was putting in overtime as his crews worked to blade snow from the county roads. James said, "I made sure the water kept running to prevent frozen pipes." As it turned out, the pipes that burst had been capped off in the ceiling when the construction crews removed the former hospital building. Without water running through the pipes and temperatures plummeting to nine degrees below zero last week, a perfect storm culminated and created broken pipes and, in turn, a flood. James said, "We had some books get wet which have been wet before during floods. We did not lose any of the computer equipment or servers, and no one was hurt. It is only property. It is insured property at that. It made a nasty mess to clean up, but we are in good hands."
After low temperatures last week of nine degrees below zero, we began to climb out of the deep freeze. This impressive ice formation which resembles a bird, was submitted by reader JoAnn Isom.
A frozen snow covered Greers Ferry Lake and beautiful sunset captured by Clarence Phillips last week.
You are walking on thin ice We have all heard the old saying, "You are walking on thin ice." Our ponds, rivers,
and lakes appear to be frozen over but are not safe. Walking across frozen waterways may
place citizens in danger, including death. Authorities remind the community that first
responders are put at risk every time they respond to these situations.