TANGIPAHOA, La. — Tangipahoa is digging out from a bitter cold snap that left ice, fallen trees and thousands of families across the parish without power.
A giant pine tree pulled down power lines as it fell across the driveway of Danielle Graves’ farm on the outskirts of Amite City.
“It caught on fire and I called Entergy and Entergy just put us on the list and I guess it burned through the line and then the power went out about an hour later,” Graves said.
Tuesday, there were fallen trees and power lines across the northern end of Tangipahoa.
Sarah Brumfeld said one came down in her neighbors yard overnight.
It split in three and then there’s another tree with a car under it that split also, but hadn’t completely fallen down yet,” Brumfeld said. “We’ve still got ice everywhere up here. I’m ready for summer.”
So why did so many trees fall over during this cold snap in Tangipahoa Parish?
Parish leaders said the ground was already supersaturated with water from recent rains. That, combined with the extra weight of the ice on the branches caused big trees to topple over.
“There’s still trees falling,” Tangipahoa Parish President Robbie Miller said. “As you drive down the road you need to be aware of watching that because limbs and trees are still giving way and can fall across the road.”
The temperature got down to the mid-teens overnight in Tangipahoa. Tuesday, it struggled to get above freezing.
“Sitting in front of the TV and staying warm with blankets and a lot of clothes on. I’m just anxious for this to get over with, Brumfeld said.
Miller said the bitter cold is still a huge problem, particularly for families who lost power.
“Those folks are probably struggling because they are needing to have heat,” Miller said. “Hopefully they have fireplaces.”
Back on the farm, Danielle Graves does have a fireplace, but she says it is still about 55 degrees in her house.
“I think I am not a winter person, Graves said.
Tangipahoa is expected to thaw out over the next couple of days.
Another cold front could arrive before the end of the week.
As of late Tuesday afternoon, there were still about 3500 Entergy customers without electricity in Tangipahoa.
