MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Winter weather is moving through the Memphis area and it's creating some potentially hazardous road conditions Thursday morning.
Friday, February 12, 2021
5:15 pm:
Update from MLGW:
Approximately 1,200 Memphis Light, Gas and Water customers are without power following widespread damage from Thursday’s ice storm. Eleven contract crews from middle and east Tennessee, 49 MLGW crews and 32 local tree trimming crews aim to restore ninety-five percent of customers who have been off since yesterday by midnight tonight.
Since midnight last night, we had an additional 15,494 customers affected by outages for a total of 39,078. (A large part of these may be due to cutting circuits off and on for safety purposes, but it represents how many customers experienced some type of outage.) All MLGW and contract crews are fully engaged in the restoration effort. Crews will continue to work quickly and safely until all customers are restored.
Important MLGW contact information for customers:
- Outage Reporting: 544-6500
- Emergency: 528-4465 (This number should be treated like 911. Use it to report gas leaks and downed electrical lines.)
- Customer Care Center: 544-6549
- Online Outage Center: mlgw.com/home/outagecenter
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12:15 pm:
Latest update from the City of Memphis:
Public Works: Public Works Snow and Ice operations worked around-the-clock Wednesday and Thursday and those efforts have improved road conditions throughout the city. As of today the main priority routes such as bridges, overpasses, inclines and declines were mostly clear.
During the winter storms, Public Works crews received (25) reports of downed tree blocking city streets and (23) have been cleared. To report a downed tree, please call 311 and to report after-hours contact OEM at 901-636-2525.
MLGW:
More than 3,200 MLGW outages remain from Thursday’s winter storm resulting in damage. Over 200 outages will be addressed today as (11) contract crews from Middle and East Tennessee will join (47) MLGW crews and (32) tree trimming crews. To report a power outage contact MLGW at 544-6500.
Solid Waste operations:
City of Memphis Solid Waste crews will proceed with caution today. Added safety precautions and lower attendance will likely result in some delays and crews are on a one-day delayed schedule through Saturday, February 13. Customers are asked to take your carts to the curb on your regular day, and leave them until it’s collected.
Monday, February 15, is Presidents’ Day. Solid waste collections will slide to the next day all week. For example, if your pickup day is Monday, February 15, your collection service will happen on Tuesday, January 16. Friday, February 19 customers will be collected Saturday, February 20.
Warming Center:
The warming center had (69) people yesterday to seek shelter at the Hollywood Community Center located at 1560 N Hollywood St, Memphis, TN 38108. The Warming Center will remain open until further notice.
Those seeking overnight shelter accommodations or food assistance are encouraged to seek assistance from our partners at Memphis Union Mission located at 383 Poplar Avenue, The Salvation Army located at 696 Jackson Avenue or for additional local shelters call (901) 5294545.
For assistance regarding transportation, beginning at 6 p.m., please contact the Office of Emergency Management (OEM) at (901) 297-1680.
Motorists should stay cautious, during today’s and tonight’s commute, and treat any areas as potentially slick. Public Works crew are on standby and will continue monitoring weather road conditions through today and throughout the weekend.
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9:40 am:
From MLGW: Around 3,500 MLGW customers are without power following Thursday’s ice storm & resulting damage.
Over 200 separate outages will be addressed today as 11 contract crews from middle and east Tennessee join MLGW’s 47 crews and 32 tree trimming crews.
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8:50 am:
Mississippi Department of Transportation continues responding to winter weather conditions
The majority of the impacts are north of Interstate 20 along Interstate 55. In north Mississippi, a line of freezing rain caused black ice to form early Friday morning in some areas.
Currently, ice is being reported on bridges in the following counties:
- Bolivar
- Coahoma
- DeSoto
- Holmes
- Lafayette
- Leflore
- Marshall
- Panola
- Quitman
- Tallahatchie
- Tunica
- Warren
- Yalobusha
- Yazoo
All highways remain open and passable, but motorists should avoid travel if possible in affected areas.
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3:45 pm:
Latest update from the City of Memphis:
- Our emergency operations team has had no significant changes or calls for service since noon.
- 4,577 MLGW customers are currently without power across the county.
- No precipitation forecast for the next 24 hours.
- Trees and limbs may continue to fall due to the weight of ice.
- We will likely see refreezing of streets and overpasses tonight.
- The warming center is operational with 41 currently utilizing the service.
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2:00 pm:
Update from MLGW:
- Over 10,000 Memphis Light, Gas and Water customers in Memphis and Shelby County were impacted by outages as a result of an overnight ice storm. There are currently just over 5,500 customers without power. Ninety-five percent restoration is expected by midnight on Friday for those who can take power.
There are quite a few customers who have damage to their weatherheads. The weatherhead is the homeowner's property and therefore is not maintained by MLGW. Customers must have the weatherhead replaced or repaired by a licensed electrician and inspected by Code Enforcement before MLGW can restore power. The weatherhead is usually located above the roofline or attached to the gable or side of the house where the customer's wiring connects to MLGW's electric lines.
Forty-two MLGW utility crews will work as quickly and safely as possible to restore power to everyone affected. One outside crew is currently assisting MLGW with restoration efforts. Ten more are expected tomorrow morning.
Important MLGW contact information for customers:
Outage Reporting: 544-6500
Emergency: 528-4465 (This number should be treated like 911. Use it to report gas leaks and downed electrical lines.)
Customer Care Center: 544-6549
Online Outage Center: mlgw.com/home/outage center
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12:10 pm:
An update from the City of Memphis on road conditions across the area can be found HERE.
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11:25 am:
Update from the City of Memphis:
Public Works: Public Works crews will work in 12-hour shifts to treat City streets. The City has a total of 7,000 tons of salt, 8,000 tons of sand and 16 trucks for winter storm operations. Crews treated the roads with brine on Tuesday and Wednesday before the storm hit.
Crews have been running salt and sand trucks since Wednesday and we will continue to run salt and sand trucks for at least the next 48 hours. This is a continuous operation. We have snow plows, but they only really make a difference when there’s a large accumulation of snow and they are not effective on the ice.
The primary focus during wintry conditions is to first treat major streets with inclines/declines, as well as any bridges and overpasses. Secondly, crews will treat the remaining major streets on an as-needed basis. Emergency service providers such as hospitals, police precincts and fire stations will also receive special considerations during inclement weather. Please allow crews room to work and we encourage residents to take it slow as you commute over the next 48 hours.
Warming Center: The City’s Warming Center is open at the Hollywood Community Center, located at 1560 N. Hollywood Street. For more information, call 636-2525.
Those seeking overnight shelter accommodations or food assistance are encouraged to seek assistance from our partners at Memphis Union Mission located at 383 Poplar Avenue, The Salvation Army located at 696 Jackson Avenue or for additional local shelters call (901) 529-4545.
MATA: Due to the inclement weather MATA vehicles traveling on several routes are delayed. For details, please pay attention to the numerous Omnilert real-time service alerts that are being shared, The MATA Call Center is also open and agents are available.
Until further notice, all Main Street Trolley rail cars are disabled at this time due to the inclement weather.
Call 274-MATA (6282) for more information. For questions about MATAplus, call 901-722-7109. If you don’t have an Omnilert account, its simple to create.
Solid Waste Management:
In the interest of the safety of our employees and the public, City of Memphis Solid Waste collections will suspend services today, Thursday, February 11th. Service will resume tomorrow, Friday, February 12th, on a one-day delayed schedule through Saturday, February 13th. Customers are asked to take your carts to the curb on your regular day, and leave them until it’s collected.
Monday, February 15th, is President Day. Solid waste collections will slide to the next day all week. For example, if your pickup day is Monday, February 15th, your collection service will happen on Tuesday, January 16th. Friday, February 19th customers will be collected Saturday, February 20th.
Downed trees:
Public Works crews are working to remove trees from blocking city streets from the winter storm. So far, we have received reports of (12) trees down blocking city streets. Public Works crews are working on these locations in the order in which they are received or based on the priority assigned. To report a downed tree, please call 311 and to report downed trees after-hours contact OEM at 901-636-2525.
Community Centers-Meals at all City of Memphis community centers are suspended today along with meals at the following senior centers: McWherter, Raleigh Frayser, and J.K. Lewis.
MLGW: More than 217 outages were reported in Memphis and Shelby County as result of the winter storm that moved through overnight. Currently, approximately 7,500 customers are without power.
To report a power outage contact MLGW at 544-6500. If you are experiencing an electric outage at home but still have online access through your cell phone or mobile device you can monitor current outage information by visiting MLGW’s Outage Map https://www.mlgw.com/residential/outagemap.
To report a powerline down, you should immediately call MLGW’s 24-hour Emergency Hotline at (901) 528-4465.
We will continue to keep residents informed with updates on the City’s website https://www.memphistn.gov/, as well as Facebook (@MEMCity) and Twitter @CityofMemphis) as information becomes available.
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11:00 am:
A Local 24 News Photographer got dash camera video of road conditions Thursday morning along I-55 and I-240. Memphis Police said from about 4AM to about 10AM, they responded to nearly 30 crashes.
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10:00 am:
MLGW reports more than 7500 without power right now in the Memphis Area.
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9:20 am:
Memphis International Airport update:
- Runways are open and flights are arriving and departing.
- Crews deployed de-icing chemicals on the runways overnight and we are currently monitoring them to ensure that ice is not accumulating. We have temperature sensors on the airfield that allow us to be aware of any problem areas.
- We are seeing some cancellations from the passenger carriers. As early as yesterday some of the airlines made the call to cancel some of today’s flights. Thus far there are 12 cancellations today per FlightAware (https://flightaware.com/live/cancelled/today/KMEM).
- However, a number of flights are still scheduled for today.
- Passengers are still advised to check with their airline before traveling today, as weather across the nation could create schedule changes.
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8:45 am:
Tree down blocking Forest Avenue just east of N. Evergreen in Midtown
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8:40 am:
City of Memphis update on road conditions
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8:30 am:
Several Driver Services Centers in West Tennessee are closed Thursday.
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7:55 am:
UPDATE at 8:25 am: Church Rd between Horn Lake & Tulane has reopened.
Church Road between Horn Lake Road and Tulane Road closed due to power lines down, please avoid the area.
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7:45 am Update:
Mississippi Department of Transportation (MDOT) crews are responding to winter weather conditions in north Mississippi as freezing rain continues to fall.
Since last night, crews have been out treating bridges with salt and slag to lower the freezing point of water and increase traction.
Ice is currently being reported on roads and bridges in Quitman, Coahoma, Tunica, DeSoto, and Marshall counties.
In Desoto County, roads are icy from Hernando north:
- U.S. Highway 61 from the Tunica County line to the state line is icy.
- Interstate 69, Interstate 55 and Interstate 269 are also icy.
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Memphis International Airport Update
7:45 am:
- Runways are open and flights are arriving and departing.
- Crews deployed de-icing chemicals on the runways overnight and we are currently monitoring them to ensure that ice is not accumulating. We have temperature sensors on the airfield that allow us to be aware of any problem areas.
- We are seeing some cancellations from the passenger carriers. As early as yesterday some of the airlines made the call to cancel some of today’s flights. Thus far there are 12 cancellations today per FlightAware (https://flightaware.com/live/cancelled/today/KMEM).
- However, a number of flights are still scheduled for today.
- Passengers are still advised to check with their airline before traveling today, as weather across the nation could create schedule changes.
