Much of north Mississippi was spared power failures suffered elsewhere in the state

An unprecedented winter storm had many Mississippians south of here still without electrical power Thursday afternoon, Feb. 18.

However, much of north Mississippi appeared to have “dodged a bullet” so far as freezing rain and loss of electrical power were concerned.

Watching the weather radar during the last few days, it was hard to believe how frequently bands of freezing rain missed Lee and Union Counties.

“Sometimes it’s better to be lucky than to be smart,” commented Bill Mattox, general manager of New Albany Light, Gas and Water (NALGW). Mattox said NALGW had had no problems with customers losing electrical power because of the storm.

“We had sleet and snow, but no freezing rain, so no ice collected on trees,” said Mattox.

Tupelo Water and Light (TWL) reported few if any loses of power by its customers. The same was true in Houston in Chickasaw County.

There were reports of power outages in Monroe County.

Unfortunately, a hundred miles south of here in Winston and Neshoba counties, freezing rain broke tree limbs, which dragged down power lines. Many customers lost power.

Most Louisville and Winston County customers had power restored by nightfall Thursday.

However, NALGW is sending one or more crews to hard-hit Philadelphia in Neshoba County early Friday to help restore electrical service to customers there.