We experienced our first ice storm since moving to the coast, as well as the longest power outage we have seen. The commissioner’s board has decalred a state of emergency for Lincoln County. At one point this weekend over half the residents of the county were without power during very cold temperatures. So far, there haven’t been any serious accidents or deaths reported. The county, CLPUD, other local utilities, and ODOT are working as fast as they can to clear hundreds of downed trees, down or damaged transmission lines, and get fiber back up and running. Hwy 20 & Hwy 229 had to close due to downed lines and trees, which cut a lot of people off from returning home from work or venturing out for supplies.
It looks like the worst of it has passed and the roads were pretty safe this morning minus a few black ice spots near Lost Creek. I went out early this morning to try to capture some of the icy scenes in Newport while the traffic was low. The bridge, while dangerous, was beautifully coated in almost an inch of ice.
