County continues effort to rid area of ice

If Ronnie Hamilton had a movie camera, he says he’d be a millionaire by now.

For two days, he watched one car after another spin out of control trying to leave the Southland Village Shopping Center from an iced and hilly exit.

“It’s been crazy. I can tell you that for sure,” he said. “It got bad, got bad again. And then it got worse.”

The exit thawed in Thursday and Friday’s afternoon sun. The parking spaces in front of Hamilton’s business, Village Spirits and Wine, were another story. He spent a portion of Friday afternoon chipping away at the ice that lined the front of the shopping plaza.

“This corner caught a lot of ice. The sun … never touches it,” he said.

Temperatures reached 59 degrees Friday afternoon, but it was not warm enough to melt away the ice that blanketed shady roads and parking lots.

Ice patches were responsible for at least one wreck in Pike County Friday morning. The driver of a Toyota Camry found a slick patch of ice waiting for her on the other side of a hill on Pike County Lake Road.

She and three passengers – including a baby – were taken to Troy Regional Medical Center with minor injuries. According to a state trooper at the scene, the driver came over the hill, panicked when she saw the patch of ice and slammed on her brakes as she came down the hill, causing the vehicle to flip at least once and land on its side.

James Mitchell heard the wreck from his kitchen window.

“When it hit in there, it bounced back out,” he said, pointing to the ditch along the road.

Jeanna Barnes, director of Pike County Emergency Management, said the county had to extend road closures until 4 p.m. Friday because there were still several roads county officials deemed unsafe.

“Workers have been working around the clock to try to get our roads in a condition safe for travel,” Barnes said. “I’d like to thank everyone for their patience. I know it’s a hardship when you can’t get out like you’re used to.”

The long hours will come at a price for the city and county. The total impact of the storm and the expenses related to it have not yet been determined.

Troy Mayor Jason Reeves started reviewing productivity reports Friday. The city’s 911 operators only reported three hours of overtime this week. Reeves expected to find more when he reviewed police and public works reports.

“We certainly have some expense with it. But we’re hopeful that since the governor declared a state of emergency and we declared a state of emergency, we’ll get some of it back,” Reeves said. “As much as anything, we’ve lost productivity with the city being shut down.”

He commended all departments for their long hours and efforts this week.

“Our people did a tremendous job. They performed very well with how hard they worked and how competently they worked,” he said.

Crews devoted much of their time Friday combating the remaining ice on well-traveled sidewalks and roadways. Reeves said the city used shovels, chemical compounds, blowtorches and sand along the north sides of several downtown buildings.

Vaughn Daniels, director of Troy Public Works, said the city’s roads were much better by Friday afternoon.

“We only have one street that is closed now and that’s Pell Avenue,” he said. “With the temperatures we have right now, it should clear up. Some of this on Pell is already breaking up.”

The ice can’t melt fast enough for Daniels. Despite the barricades that have been placed on dangerous roads, motorists have continued to use them.

“In fact, the other day we had someone take the barricades down,” he said. “They want the shortest route, even if it’s not the safest.”

Jessica Chase, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, said the ice should be a thing of the past in the next few days.

“We don’t have freezing temperatures for Troy at all for the next seven days,” she said. “By Sunday everything should be melted.”

Today’s low will be in the upper 30s and the temperature will get as high as the 60s. Sunday will range between the low 50s and 70s. Chase said the forecasted rain would only help rid the area of leftover ice and snow.