Round Number Two

On the heels of Public Service Commission hearings seeking input on AmerenUE's request for a 17.7% rate increase, forecasters are predicting another blast from Dr. Freeze. Exactly which part of the St. Louis area will be effected by a wave that a KSDK forecaster, this afternoon, said has the potential to glaze the area with as much ice as December's storm.

The National Weather Service is predicting a half-inch of accumulation or more through the weekend.

AmerenUE has released a statement saying:

AmerenUE officials say they are preparing as they do for each storm by placing crews on alert and readying equipment and communications systems with the forecasted approach of yet another major winter storm.

“During severe storms, AmerenUE’s first priority is to correct potentially life- threatening situations, such as downed power lines or hospitals without power,” says Richard J. Mark, senior vice president, Missouri Energy Delivery. “We then implement carefully designed power restoration plans focused on getting power back on for the greatest number of people in the shortest amount of time.”

He adds that the safety of the public and the crews working to restore power is the most critical priority. In restoring electricity, crews begin with main lines--those that serve thousands of people. Then they move to lines that can affect hundreds; secondary lines that affect dozens; and finally to service lines at individual homes.

Governor Matt Blunt released a statement this afternoon saying he had activated the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) in anticipation of requests for aid.

The immediate St. Louis city area could potentially be spared the worst of the storm. The dividing-line between the northern below-freezing temperatures and the southern, slightly above-freezing temperatures is likely to bisect the metro area.

That said, it's off to the store to stock up on de-icer and purchase a new ice scraper; the last one having been destroyed last time we were told we'd be spared.