Tennessee logs 14 cold-related deaths
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — A new layer of ice formed over parts of Tennessee on Thursday after a deadly storm blanketed the state in snow and sent temperatures plummeting earlier this week — part of a broader bout of bitter cold sweeping the country from Oregon to the Northeast.
Authorities said at least 14 deaths in Tennessee alone are blamed on the system, which dumped more than 9 inches of snow since Sunday on parts of Nashville, a city that rarely see such accumulations. Temperatures also plunged below zero in parts of the state, creating the largest power demand ever across the seven states served by the Tennessee Valley Authority.
Thursday’s freezing rain compounded problems, adding a thin glaze of ice in some areas ahead of another expected plunge in temperatures over the weekend. Many schools and government offices have closed, and the state Legislature also shut down, canceling in-person meetings all week.
Near Portland, Ore., ice slowly began to melt in areas south of the city as warmer temperatures and rain arrived Thursday. But a National Weather Service advisory through today warned of freezing rain and gusting winds of up to 40 mph for parts of the state. Most Portland-area school districts canceled classes for a third straight day because of slick roads and water damage from burst frozen pipes.
More than 40 deaths nationwide have been attributed to the frigid weather in the past week.
The dead in Tennessee included a box truck driver who slid into a tractor-trailer on an interstate, a man who fell through a skylight while cleaning a roof, and a woman who died of hypothermia after being found unresponsive in her home. The deaths occurred in nine Tennessee counties spanning more than 400 miles.
The Tennessee Highway Patrol said it also investigated three fatal car wrecks caused by the storm, more than 200 wrecks involving injuries and more than 600 others without injuries.
Shelby County, which includes Memphis and is the state’s largest county, has had the most deaths, five. But officials have declined to release many details about the deaths, citing privacy concerns for the families involved. Tennessee’s Department of Health also refused to confirm accounts provided by local authorities of deaths likely tied to the 14-death total.
Across the country in Washington state, five people died from hypothermia over a fourday span that saw temperatures plummet to well below freezing in Seattle, the King County Medical Examiner’s office said.
Three of those who died between Jan. 11 and Monday were presumed homeless, said Kate Cole, a spokesperson for Public Health — Seattle and King County, in an email. One other person was temporarily housed, and one lived in a private residence. She cautioned that since reporting and investigating deaths takes time, the toll could still rise.
And in western New York, the icy weather was blamed for three deaths in three days. Then on Thursday, an American Airlines plane slid off a snowy taxiway in Rochester, N.Y., after a flight from Philadelphia. No injuries were reported.