We hope you got your Christmas shopping done, because the extremely cold temps are a real doozy.
The National Weather Service and the Greenbrier County Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management advise all against prolonged exposure to the outdoors, particularly tonight, after the sun goes down, as wind gusts will continue to drive wind chills down to 30-40 degrees below zero.
Officials are warning against water pipe freezes and advise people to keep under-sink cabinet doors open and trickling water from faucets. If your pipes do freeze, shut off the water main immediately, and then warm frozen pipes with a hair dryer or space heater.
Speaking of space heaters, make sure that they are never covered by clothing, rugs, pillows or any other kind of cloth or covering, and make sure they are not close to any wall or furniture. Also, do not plug your space heater into an extension cord.
As of 11 o’clock this morning, temperatures at Snowshoe registered at -25 degrees. The Beckley airport registered -21 degrees.
The Christmas Eve forecast does not look much better. A winter weather advisory remains in effect in Greenbrier county until 7 a.m. on Christmas Eve, and a windchill advisory remains in effect until 1 p.m. Tomorrow’s forecasted low is -8 degrees without the wind chill.
This morning in Greenbrier County, MonPower reported 127 households without electricity. APCO reported 408. Crews worked throughout the day to restore power to homes.
The non-emergency telephone number for Greenbrier Countians seeking warming stations is 304-647-7911.
According to the National Weather Service, the coldest temperatures ever recorded in West Virginia were -45 degrees in Lewisburg on Dec. 30, 1917.
