Much of US still gripped by Arctic weather as Memphis deals with numerous broken water pipes
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Much of the US remained in the grip of deadly Arctic weather on Sunday – with freezing temperatures reaching as far south as Texas and Florida. But the numbing cold is expected to subside in the coming days.
Crews in Memphis, Tennessee continued to work around the clock Sunday to find and repair broken pipes that were causing low water pressure throughout the system. Some residents have been without running water for days, and all of the utility’s 400,000 customers are still under a boil water notice.
Memphis Light Gas and Water President and CEO Doug McGowen said in a video posted to social media Saturday evening that he hopes to have an estimate of when pressure will be restored by Sunday afternoon.
“Wait a minute,” McGowen said. “Neighbors help neighbors.”
As of Saturday afternoon, the utility had repaired 36 broken water pipes and more than 2,000 leaks in homes and businesses. As temperatures began to rise above freezing on Sunday, more leaks were expected to come to light. McGowen asked residents to stop dripping taps once things warmed up, a measure that would add 5 to 10 million gallons a day to the system and help restore water pressure.
Rhodes College in Memphis began sending residential students home Saturday and moving those who couldn’t return home to hotels. The school scheduled virtual classes on Mondays and Tuesdays.
“We ask that you DO NOT come to campus on both days due to the ongoing water situation and the dangers it poses,” the school’s announcement said.
Memphis was the largest, but not the only, water system in Tennessee to experience problems due to the unusually cold weather. The Tennessee Emergency Management Agency said Saturday evening that 28 water systems have issued boil water notices.
The persistent cold weather is also responsible for at least 25 deaths in Tennessee, according to the Tennessee Department of Health. Nationally, winter storms have claimed at least 67 lives in the U.S. this month, many involving hypothermia or traffic accidents.
Elsewhere, freezing rain, sleet and high winds were expected to make travel particularly treacherous in parts of Kansas and Oklahoma later Sunday, the National Weather Service said. The wind chills in Iowa made it feel like minus 20 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 7 degrees Celsius) in some parts.
But the end of the subzero temperatures – which swept into the US on Friday – was in sight for parts of the country. For example, daily high temperatures in Iowa’s capital, Des Moines, were expected to remain above freezing starting Monday.
“Without additional replenishment of Arctic air from Canada, steady warming is in store for the central part of the country,” the weather service said.
In Western New York, Buffalo Bills fans prepared for another home game Sunday night against the Kansas City Chiefs, with temperatures forecast around 20 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 7 degrees Celsius), winds around 10 mph (16 kph) and a small chance of snow showers. On Friday and Saturday, hundreds of people came to Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park to help shovel snow from the stands for the second week in a row, earning $20 an hour.
Nearly two feet of snow fell in the area last week. Fans also helped clear snow from the stadium before Monday’s 31-17 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers in frigid temperatures.
The Erie County Sheriff’s Office on Sunday urged fans not to throw snowballs into the stadium or enter the construction site of the new stadium.
On the West Coast, more freezing rain was forecast in the Columbia River Gorge and the area was expected to remain near or below freezing at least until Sunday night. Trees and power lines already covered in ice could fall if they get more, the National Weather Service warned.
“Stay safe over the next few days as our region tries to thaw,” the weather service said. “Chunks of falling ice will also remain a hazard.”
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Associated Press writers David Collins in Hartford, Connecticut, and Curt Anderson in St. Petersburg, Florida, contributed to this story.