This past weekend Oxford, Mississippi, the South, and parts of the north were struck by a historic ice storm.
The last two weeks have been devastating for the South of America, but it has been especially devastating to all of Oxford.
Many citizens and Mississippi University students were left without heat or running water. The roads, trees, power lines, and buildings were covered with more than an inch of ice dropped by the storm.
Thousands of reported residents lost electricity and even weeks after the storm tens of thousands still are dealing with this, though it’s slowly getting better as crews work to restore service.
Thick ice and fallen trees covered the roads, making it impossible to travel. Police ended up having to close roads and advise residents to refrain from traveling unless necessary. Authorities even issued shelter-in-place orders when travel was deemed too dangerous.
The University of Mississippi closed for many days as students struggled with the unsafe campus conditions through recovery.
The ice accumulation brought down many trees and tree limbs across neighborhoods, public spaces, and roads. This created a mass amount of debris that residents are still clearing. In shaded areas chunks of ice remained long after temperatures started to go back up.
Utility crews, emergency responders, and volunteers have been working to get roads cleared, get power back up, and assist residents. Although some progress has been made some people are still without electricity and other basic services.
Residents have shared social media posts of their struggles, like spoiled food, cold nights without heat or lights, and the extensive waiting for news on the state of when help would come, this was especially felt from older adults and families with young children.
While warmer weather has mostly melted the ice the recovery is still ongoing with the help of workers. Officials have emphasized patience and caution as crews work through the lingering effects of an unusually severe storm for this part of the country.
“My apartment was like 40 degrees this morning, so I’m just trying to warm up and charge my phone.” said Weston Heeren, in an article by Wlox student.
Ole Miss announced a campus closure that lasted more than a week. Classes, events, and activities were canceled through at least February 1 and even extended to Feb. 8 in some notices as the university worked to recover.
“Everybody’s here with the same situation, no power, no electricity. Everybody’s cold. Everybody’s looking for a way to stay warm and charge their things a little bit, get communication with the rest of the world.” reported Dustin Mora, in the same article.
Despite everything the Ole Miss students have found community and have been supporting their peers through this trying time. Many posted about gathering together to keep warm and share electricity. Thankfully there were also local campus volunteers that organized to help with food, supplies, and support for classmates and community members affected by the storm.
Hopefully soon we’ll see a full recovery to everyone in Oxford and see it returned to its former glory.
