Clay County is making steady progress just days after a damaging ice storm swept through the area, causing many power outages.
Clay County Emergency Management Director Kyle Haney said about 1,300 residents remain without power as of Tuesday morning. He said Tri-County Electric and other emergency crews are working together to clear debris so they can reach damaged power lines.
“Things are definitely getting better,” Haney said. “And we have had a lot of help from TEMA and state resources, Red Cross. So, we are just coming together, especially as a community. It’s some slow-going areas that we are dealing with without power.”
Haney said T-DOT has cleared and made the county’s main roads safe for travel, but some back roads remain icy. He encouraged residents to check on their neighbors and to take advantage of county resources that are available during the recovery.
“We have a water distribution site set up at the Women’s Pavilion (County Fairgrounds) on Archive Road, and we have three shelters still open as well, so that includes people who take advantage of those shelters, especially throughout the frigid temperatures. If they need transportation, we can get them there.”
Haney said the progress made across the county would not have been possible without help from other Upper Cumberland counties. He added that coming together as a community is what Clay County does best.
“We have a lot of people checking on their neighbors, making sure that they are okay, calling in, welfare checks, just to make sure that they are doing okay,” Haney said. “It is a pretty extended period that some people are dealing with without power, so we always encourage them to check on them, deliver water, anything like that, and we are gonna get through this together.”
Haney said if anything is urgent, the county will use the reverse phone system to send out notifications to residents.