Most schools are open, outages dropping

One week after one of the most devastating ice storms in state history, electrical companies continued to restore power — aided by the weather, finally.

About 38,600 Tulsa-area customers were still without power Sunday night, down from about 246,000 last week.

Power is still expected to be restored for most in Tulsa by Tuesday or early Wednesday at the latest, although there will be some customers with electric meter connection damage still without power for days longer than that, said Preston Kissman, the vice president of distribution for AEP-PSO.

“If we don’t get it done by Tuesday night, it will be shortly thereafter,” Kissman said. “It’s slow going; it’s yard-to-yard now.”

Sunday lived up to its name as crews worked for the first time since the storm in bright and relatively warm conditions, which are expected to continue through the week.

Classes are to resume Monday in nearly all schools in the Tulsa metropolitan area.

Kissman said crews are now dealing with getting special equipment into people’s yards to replace poles and repair electrical equipment, and in some cases they are having to make temporary fixes.

Poles and lines that are temporarily fixed will be replaced and fully repaired after power is restored to all areas, Kissman said.

American Electric Power-Public Service Company of Oklahoma is also using an automated phone system to contact customers who have had power restored

Thousands of utility line and tree service workers — most from out of state — are working in the area.

They are using the fairgrounds as a base of operations.

Customers calling in about power outages should note whether their electric meter connection has damage, which will require an electrician to repair it, Kissman said.

With only 400 licensed electricians in the city, and between 5,600 and 10,000 structures with damaged electric meter connections, Mayor Kathy Taylor said the city is reaching out to organizations and companies such as the Association of Building Contractors, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and American Airlines to help bring in more electricians.

Tulsa electricians were reporting a two- to four-week backlog, and to help speed the process, the city set up a central supply and dispatch center for the licensed electricians at Expo Square, said Taylor, who was also answering calls at the Mayor’s Action Center because of the large call volume.

The dispatch center helps electrical contractors obtain supplies and expedite the permit process, officials said.

“It’s not acceptable for people to be without power by the year’s end,” Taylor said. “Our priority is to get people’s power on as quickly as possible.

We’ll continue this effort until they get the power on.”

Taylor got an aerial view of some of the hardest-hit areas Sunday via a 30-minute flight aboard a Tulsa Police Department helicopter.

“I think we’re making great progress,” she said. “It’s amazing because everyone is pulling together.”

After all residents have electricity again, Taylor said, the city should begin to assess damage to many of the trees.

“This is Green Country, and those trees have had a severe beating,” she said.

“Once the citizens are taken care of, we need to make the city green again.”

Although most streets are clear of tree debris, drivers should still be cautious of low-hanging branches and other obstructions over streets, said Dan Crossland, deputy director of public facilities at the city Public Works Department.

“We’re making steady progress,” he said.

“It’s going to be a long process.”

Schools: Nearly all Tulsa Public Schools’ sites and most suburban districts will hold classes Monday, officials said.

Because many schools in the district have been without power, some classrooms may be colder than normal, and parents are encouraged to layer students’ clothing to ensure they stay warm, district spokeswoman Tami Marlar said in a news release.

Power had been restored to most of TPS’ 89 sites Sunday.

“We are in constant contact with officials at PSO,” Superintendent Michael Zolkoski said in a news release.

“They have made schools one of their top priorities as they restore power throughout the city,” he said in a special meeting with members of his cabinet Sunday afternoon, the release said.

District officials had initially planned to transport students from schools where there was no electricity to temporary, alternate locations.

But concerns over transportation and meals led to the decision to close schools that remained in the dark as of 7:30 p.m. Sunday, the district said.

At the height of the icestorm aftermath, TPS lost power to 70 of its 89 sites. Classes at Broken Arrow, Union, Owasso and Jenks will be held Monday, officials at those districts said.

EMSA calls: As of Sunday afternoon, Tulsa EMSA paramedics had responded to about 103 calls of carbon monoxide poisoning in the past week, with 76 patients being taken to hospitals, one with life-threatening injuries because of the poisoning, said Tina Wells, EMSA spokeswoman.

Most of the cases were from people using generators or charcoal grills inside their houses, she said.

Five people in the Tulsa area have also died as a result of house fires since the ice storm hit Sunday.

Clifton Adcock 581-8367
clifton.adcock@tulsaworld.com

CLOSED TPS SCHOOLS

All but seven schools in the Tulsa Public Schools district will have classes Monday, officials said.

The Tulsa schools that will remain closed are:

Bryant Elementary School, 6201 E. Virgin St.

Carnegie Elementary School, 4309 E. 56th St.

Jackson Elementary School, 2137 N. Pittsburg Ave.

McKinley Elementary School, 6703 E. King Ave.

Phillips Elementary School, 3613 S. Hudson Ave.

Project 12, 1205 W. Newton St.

Whitney Middle School, 2177 S. 67th East Ave.

Those campuses will be closed to all employees and students.

Tulsa-area forecast

Monday: Mostly sunny. High 53.

Tuesday: Mostly sunny. High 56.

Wednesday: Mostly sunny. High 57.

Thursday: Mostly sunny. High 56.

Friday: Mostly sunny. High 60.

Utility vehicle strikes, kills Tulsa pedestrian

A Tulsa man died Sunday morning after he was struck by an outof- state utility vehicle driven by a power crew worker, police said.

Floyd Crabtree, 79, of Tulsa was walking home in the 4300 block of West Easton Place at 11:42 a.m. after having spoken with utility workers, police Sgt. Les Young said.

Crabtree was crossing the street when a utility truck from Alabama backed over him, Young said.

Preston Kissman, the vice president of distribution for AEP-PSO, said customers were outside speaking to the crew members, wondering when their power would be restored.

“When you’ve got that much big equipment moving through the neighborhoods, it is a danger,” Kissman said.

Crabtree was taken to St. John Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.

The name of the driver was not immediately available.

Police said they believe the incident was an accident.

Young said the driver of the truck wasn’t arrested, and police are still investigating.