Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, January 16, 1994 TAG: 9401170062
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By LAURENCE HAMMACK and PAUL DELLINGER STAFF WRITERS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
The low Saturday at the Roanoke Regional Airport was 2 degrees - making it the coldest day since Dec. 23, 1989, when the temperature dipped to -2, according to Jan Jackson of the National Weather Service.
But the really cold weather was to come overnight, Jackson said.
"It looks pretty wintry," he said. "It looks like we're going to stay below freezing through Thursday."
Temperatures were expected to dip near zero early today, and bitter northwest winds could make it feel like 20 to 30 degrees below zero.
The National Weather Service issued a wind-chill advisory Saturday afternoon - warning that even brief exposure to the biting winds could lead to frostbite or hypothermia.
Most people seemed to be staying out of the cold. A spokesman at Roanoke Memorial Hospital said there had been no weather-related admissions by late Saturday afternoon. The winds were expected to die down by today.
Citing the frigid temperatures and the fact people are staying indoors, the public affairs coordinator for Appalachian Power, Richard Burton, announced the company reached a new peak usage record - 6,101,000 kilowatts - at 11 a.m. Saturday. Burton said the record surpasses the previous high of 5,996,000 kilowatts set at 10 a.m. on Dec. 22, 1989.
Appalachian Power also reported a power outage in Wytheville and Wythe County late Saturday. It affected approximately 600 customers, including the Wythe County Community Hospital, according to Bob Kilgore, the company's Pulaski Division manager.
Roanoke police also ran into difficulties with the cold Saturday night. Traffic backed up as many attending the U.S. Hot Rod Grand Slam Motor Jam at the Civic Center were reluctant to park far from the main lot, police said.
In Burkes Garden, one of the coldest spots in Southwest Virginia, it dropped to -3 on Saturday. The low in Wytheville was zero, and Floyd County had a reading of 3 degrees.
The cold wave made for hot business for anyone selling fuel oil.
"Our switchboard has been lighting up like a Christmas tree," said Ron Lundy, president of APB Whiting Oil Co.
Roanoke's homeless shelters were equally busy. The City Rescue Mission had 116 people spend the night Friday, according to Joy Sylvester-Johnson, director of development.
Because of the weather, the mission kept its transient section open throughout the day Saturday. Only a few homeless people stayed after breakfast was served, Sylvester-Johnson said.
But with public buildings closed today and temperatures expected to remain frigid, mission officials said the living area would be more crowded today.
Sylvester-Johnson said she has received many calls from people asking if there was room for them if their heat failed.
The shelter has also received lots of help offers, including one from a woman who volunteered extra rooms in her large house and another from some people at Grandin Court Baptist Church who sent over a large pot of hot soup.
"Every little bit helps," Sylvester-Johnson said.
In the New River Valley, weather-related problems with Appalachian Power Co.'s No. 2 South Christiansburg substation caused about 3,050 customers to lose power shortly before 10:30 a.m. Saturday. Most of them lived in the area from Second Street to beyond the Pilot Post Office.
Apco crews got power restored to most within about two hours.
Despite the cold weather, there was still a demand for ice cream.
Tommie Lawson, part-owner of Baskin Robbins on Williamson Road in Roanoke, said business was just fine Saturday.
"We still have people who love ice cream, and they're going to brave any kind of weather to get it," Lawson said.
Staff writer Todd Jackson contributed information to this story.
by CNB