THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, February 8, 1996 TAG: 9602070161
SECTION: SUFFOLK SUN PAGE: 08 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Cover Story
SOURCE: BY FRANK ROBERTS, JODY SNIDER AND SUSIE STOUGHTON, STAFF WRITERS
LENGTH: Long : 116 lines
THE BLIZZARD OF '96, Part II, brought ice, sleet, snow - and fun - to western Tidewater.
Schools and businesses closed as road crews scraped streets, utility workers repaired power lines and technicians restarted furnaces. Working parents scrambled for substitute day care, and stay-at-home parents devised entertainment for children at home.
The young and young-at-heart frolicked outside. Bird lovers watched red-winged blackbirds, juncos and cardinals feasting at feeders. And everywhere, ice-laden trees sparkled, their limbs twinkling like diamond-studded doilies.
The weather was beautiful or ugly, depending on one's outlook.
For those without power, heat or water, the view was far from lovely.
Plumbers and furnace repairmen labored long past their usual quitting time.
Sandra Peace, who handles the phone for her husband's business - William L. Peace Plumbing and Heating - took about 25 calls early Monday.
First, her husband takes care of callers without heat, then customers with no water. Last are those with frozen pipes in part of the house but running water elsewhere.
It's worst-case, first-served.
Furnace repair companies also had to set priorities.
Some customers demand immediate service, even if they have back-up heat, said Sue Copeland, who takes calls for her husband's company, Copeland's Refrigeration Heating & Electrical.
``I compare it to going to Obici,'' she said. ``If they've got a heart attack patient and you've got a broken leg, they're going to work on the heart attack first.''
Her phone had been ringing since 5:15 a.m. Monday.
Some callers were out of fuel.
``So many people just don't check whether they've got oil in their tank,'' she said.
Police reported few accidents.
``They must be getting used to driving in this stuff,'' said Mike Simpkins, Suffolk Police spokesman.
Fewer crimes than usual occurred while the city was blanketed in white.
``It must have run them all indoors,'' Simpkins said Monday. ``The weather does contribute to that. It keeps them off the street.''
In other parts of western Tidewater, police were busy with fender-benders but no serious injuries.
Obici Hospital saw numerous patients with weather-related illnesses, said Diana Staats, clinical coordinator for the emergency room.
``There were a lot of falls, cuts, bruises and fractures,'' she said. ``People see snow, not realizing it often covers ice underneath. It doesn't look as slick as it is.''
People did not scurry to shelters though many lost power or water.
About 2,000 Isle of Wight residents were without water over the weekend, said Donald T. Robertson, assistant to the county administrator.
Two people spent Saturday night at a Suffolk shelter operated by the Red Cross at the Nansemond-Suffolk Rescue Squad.
``Their power was restored Sunday morning,'' said Faye Byrum, executive director of the local Red Cross chapter. ``They went home.''
In Isle of Wight County, the situation was much the same. Shelters at Windsor and Smithfield high schools were open from 2 to 8 p.m. Saturday.
``We received several calls from people asking if the shelters were open, but no one showed,'' said County Emergency Coordinator and Sheriff's Capt. Riddle Hines.
Some without electricity sought refuge in local motels.
Nearly half the weekend guests at the Comfort Inn were less than 30 miles from home, said manager Neil Patel.
Their only complaints were that nearby fast-food restaurants closed early Sunday afternoon, he said. No food was available within walking distance until the motel's continental breakfast Monday morning.
``They were eating like they hadn't eaten in days,'' Patel said.
Many who stayed home left their houses long enough to rent videos.
``Anything on the new release rack this weekend - went,'' said Martha Iverson, manager of Mr. Video on Holland Road. ``A lot of people anticipating the bad weekend came in on Friday.''
Employees were unable to get to the store to open until 4 p.m. Saturday but they checked out videos steadily until closing time at 8:30.
``In that period of time we had the equivalent of a normal full day,'' Iverson said. ``All in all, this was a record weekend.''
Road crews started clearing roads Thursday night at the storm's beginning.
``We've been working 12-hour shifts since then,'' Bob Spieldenner, public affairs officer for the Virginia Department of Transportation, said on Monday.
Main routes were clear Monday afternoon and crews tackled secondary roads before nightfall when single-digit temperatures would refreeze the streets.
Salt, a mainstay of the highway crews, doesn't work when the temperature gets too low - ``like last night,'' Spieldenner said Monday.
In January as the '96 Blizzard, Part I dumped snow across Hampton Roads, several plows landed in ditches and one slid into a police car, he said.
Ice is a great equalizer, he said. ``It doesn't matter how good a driver you are, if you hit a patch of ice, you're going to slide.'' ILLUSTRATION: [Cover, Color photo]
WINTERED IN
Staff photos by MICHAEL KESTNER
One man braved the weather Sunday to walk his dog on Smith Street in
Suffolk, but most motorists ventured out simply to enjoy the winter
wonderland.
Dan Smaltz unloads a snowball Sunday after leaving church in
downtown Suffolk.
Staff photo by MICHAEL KESTNER
Not all churches canceled Sunday services. Robert Boska clears the
steps at St. Mary's Catholic Church.
KEYWORDS: WINTER STORM by CNB