Robin Fisher, State of Affairs Producer: I guess until yesterday I would have never believed a hurricane in Texas could wreak such havoc in Kentucky and Indiana. As I was leaving Indianapolis yesterday after a weekend stay I heard the “wind warning” on the radio. I thought two things 1) Wind Warning – I’ve never heard of such a thing and 2) I’m driving out of the rain so I’ll have some smooth sailing. Well, I now know what they really mean by “wind warning” and the farther south I got the worse the wind blew. It was the most stressful two hour drive I’ve ever experienced. Fortunately I was able to keep the car on the road and keep heading home. I was lucky, there were no trees in the road but I did see a big one go down just south of Seymour.
When I got home our power was out and the big trees in my neighborhood of Norwood were swaying and trying their best to stay upright. There were several trees down and blocking roads, but no houses appeared to be damaged. Like most people in area, we are without power. But we’re safe, our families are safe, the dogs are safe, and we’re just going to hunker down for what could be a long wait for power.Tuesday Update From Robin: It's Tuesday and we are still without power, but we're okay. My husband brought dinner home from a local grocer last night and we ate by camplight. It's nice and cool out and the house got down right chilly last night. You can hear the loud hum of generators throughout the neighborhood, and they must be really loud because it isn't coming from any of the houses close to us. Driving home from work last night was a challenge with lights out and people unsure whether or not to trust their fellow drivers at intersections. I didn't see any LMPD officers, but I do think they are supposed to be at major intersections throughout the city. So, how did you survive the night?Wednesday and still dark: We're still dark in Norwood as of Wednesday morning, but things are looking up in the area. The traffic lights are working at Shelbyville Road and New LaGrange (and all the intersections by Oxmoor) and at New LaGrange and Washburn. Last night we made our first ice foray, and I must say I was surprised that 2 days after the wind we still had to drive around before we found a bag. Just a tip if you are still looking - Whole Foods has ice. Power or no power - tonight is purge the refridgerator night. This might actually teach us to be more frugal shoppers.Thursday and all back to normal: Power's up! The power in the Norwood neighborhood was restored about 7:10 last night. We are certainly happy (and unbelievably our freezer food was still frozen - but the fridge was a loss) but I'm sorry for every else who is still in the dark. Hang in there - I think light is on the way.
Laura Ellis, State of Affairs Assistant: I live in Jeffersonville, and I'm embarrassed to admit I had no idea what was going on for most of yesterday. I knew it was windy, but I was inside, in a room with the shades drawn, so I didn't realize how bad it was. At around 4, I let the dogs out and was, of course, shocked at the strength of the wind and the amount of leaves and tree limbs on the ground.
We needed dinner, but decided to try to find an open restaurant instead of grocery shopping, since we weren't sure if our power would stay on. It looked like all the businesses on Lewis & Clark Blvd. in Clarksville were without power. The mall was closed, and the Greentree 10 movie sign was warped and bent.
We did find food; the restaurants and stores on Veterans Parkway were open (and packed!). We were one of the lucky ones who did not lose power. For the next few days, we expect to be a hot water and phone-charging waystation for friends and family. We never did get groceries, but our freezer is stocked - we're storing food for my mother-in-law, who had just gone grocery shopping when she lost power to her home in Clarksville.
Pictures
These pictures were submitted by listener Ellen Raine, who was hiking Sunday on the Levee Trail, a part of Riverview Park in southern Louisville, near Mike Linnig's (click to enlarge):
This shot, also by Ellen, was taken at 4th Street Live:
Here are some pictures taken by WFPL's Gabe Bullard, on and around Cherokee Road:
Here's a picture from Classical 90.5 host Daniel Gilliam. His brother snapped this in St. Matthews:
Our receptionist Janelle Rae captured some of the damage in Marengo, Indiana:
Melissa Faurest took this picture of a fallen tree in the Highlands, and reports that it wasn't long before skateboarders took advantage of the uprooted sidewalk:
Thanks to Craig Hubbuch for sending us these ominous-looking shots of the Highlands:
