Ice Storm 2007

I can hear the hum of the power lines and see the lights flicker. A line has come down in a neighbor’s yard, so I am wondering if I am about to join the about 270,000 other utility customers in Oklahoma that don’t have power right now.

According to emergency management officials, that’s how many are out right now.

The situation in Tulsa, says Andrea Chancellor, spokeswoman for PSO Oklahoma, is bad.

Power lines in particular are a problem. They are down across the community — in some cases, criss-crossing a single customer’s yard, she said.

Even my situation is hazardous. While there isn’t a line down in my yard right now, firefighters warned me away from getting close to trees that are under power lines that still are up. Those trees could be hot, they told me.

I went back inside.

More to come later … if I stay in power.

Jack Money, Business Writer, The Oklahoman

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