Storms bring St. Louis power misery
Saturday, July 22, 2006; Posted: 7:38 a.m. EDT (11:38 GMT)
Missouri Army National Guardsman Sgt. John Hannlen clears debris during a rainstorm in St. Louis Friday.
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ST. LOUIS, Missouri (AP) -- Another day of severe storms knocked out electricity for tens of thousands of additional residents, but brought along a cold front that was welcome relief for those waiting for power to be restored.
A strong thunderstorm rolled through the region Friday, two days after one of the worst storms in recent memory caused more than 500,000 Ameren Corp. customers to lose power. Utility crews had trimmed that number significantly by Friday morning, but the total rose again after the storms, adding another twist to a week that has seen at least 29 heat-related deaths across the nation.
Late Friday, about 480,000 homes and businesses in the St. Louis area braced for a weekend without electricity. Ameren officials said it could be early next week before the outages are resolved.
As the weather improved, there was hope the outages were becoming more of an inconvenience than a health threat. The latest storm brought an end to the triple-digit temperatures that had settled over the city.
Friday's high fell short of 90 degrees, and temperatures were dipping into the upper 60s by nightfall. Forecasts called for highs into the 80s through Monday.
The problems, however, were far from over.
Tree limbs, road signs and downed power lines could be seen throughout the region.
Four St. Louis-area deaths were blamed on the weather. On Friday, Jefferson County authorities blamed Thursday's heat for the death of a 93-year-old De Soto man whose home had no power. In Affton, a 42-year-old dump truck driver died when winds blew a steel box onto him, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported.
In southwest Missouri, a 76-year-old woman who went looking for her dog apparently succumbed to 103-degree heat and was found dead on a porch about a mile from her Ozark home, police said Friday.
President Bush on Friday approved Missouri's request for an expedited disaster declaration, which mobilizes the Federal Emergency Management Agency and provides federal funding for debris removal and other emergency needs.
'I saw the roof flying'
In northwest St. Louis County, winds tore the roof off an office building.
Jeff Winkler, an analytical chemist at Severn Trent Labs, was just pulling into the parking lot when the roof came off.
"I saw the roof flying, and I was thinking, 'Please, don't hit my car,"' said Winkler, 26. "I thought I saw the worst of it earlier this week -- but this was worse."
A third American Red Cross shelter opened Friday, a day after more than 500 people spent the night in the others. Fifty-two cooling centers were set up in the area to take in those who could not stay in their hot homes.
Missouri National Guard troops spent their second day here Friday after Gov. Matt Blunt declared the city a state of emergency. Guardsmen assisted in seeking out those needing help in hot homes without power, especially the elderly, and with debris removal.
Many businesses were feeling the impact of the outages. Boeing Co.'s St. Louis defense business had to shut down after the power went out Friday, sending 4,000 workers home early.
Schnucks Markets Inc., which operates 65 grocery stores in the metro area, said eight were still without electricity Friday. Three of them had to close, and a company spokesman said meat, milk and other perishables were thrown away.
Tens of thousands of people also were without power in parts of southern Illinois that were pounded by storms for the second time in three days. Gov. Rod Blagojevich declared Madison and St. Clair counties state disaster areas.
Oklahoma City was so hot Friday that a portion of Interstate 44 buckled, forcing the temporary closure of two lanes. Oklahoma's death toll rose to seven as the state medical examiner's office said heat caused the deaths of four elderly people on Thursday.
Heat-related deaths also have been reported this week in Illinois, Kansas, Pennsylvania, Arkansas, Indiana, South Dakota and Tennessee.
