All public and private schools, along with many public offices, will be closed Monday following the winter storm that brought freezing rain and triggered some power outages over the weekend in Hopkinsville and Christian County.
Hopkinsville recorded approximately 1.4 inches of precipitation in the 24-hour period ending at 8:20 p.m. Sunday, according to data collected at the Christian County Mesonet weather station.
However, the storm’s impact locally was moderate compared to areas north of Hopkinsville. Several inches of snow fell in many areas of Kentucky, and a wintry mix on top of that was predicted late Sunday and into Monday.
In downtown Hopkinsville and most areas of the city, the ice stuck to trees limbs but had limited impact on roads, many of which were pre-treated on Saturday by highway crews. But the National Weather Service warned that conditions could worsen by Monday, and there is the potential for black ice that would make driving hazardous.
“With lingering ice cover on trees and power lines, freezing drizzle forecast tonight, and gusty winds up to around 30 mph tonight, the threat of power outages will continue through the night,” a NWS report stated.
At 6:15 p.m. Sunday, the Christian County Sheriff’s Office posted a road report on social media.
“According to units on patrol, trees are beginning to fall, particularly in the north end of the county,” the sheriff’s report states. “This can cause road closures, downed power lines and other dangerous travel conditions. If you can, the best thing to do is head on home for the night. The icy road conditions in the morning hours are still expected.”
Hopkinsville Electric and Pennyrile Electric dealt with power outages.
As of 5:15 p.m. Sunday, Hopkinsville Electric reported it had restored power to all of its customers, including those in an area off North Main Street where a large tree fell onto power lines.
Pennyrile Electric, which serves rural areas of Christian County and eight other counties in Western Kentucky, said at 5 p.m. that its crews were working on 96 outages affecting 5,257 residents.
In a social media post, a Pennyrile Electric official said, “As conditions continue to deteriorate, we continue to see additional outages across the Northern part of our service area. We have had numerous reports of trees on power lines, broken poles, and lines down. While crews continue to restore outages, we do anticipate extended outage times. If you experience or are experiencing an outage, please make preparations.”
A winter weather advisory remains in effect for Christian and surrounding counties until noon Monday.
According to the NWS forecast, there is a chance of snow Monday morning. The high temperature will be 30 degrees and winds will gust up to 24 mph.
High temperatures will range from the mid-20s to mid-30s through the rest of this week. The next chance for now is on Friday.
Delays, closures and cancellations
The following weather-related delays, closures and cancellations on Monday have been announced:
- Hopkinsville Community College, all campuses closed
- Christian County Public School closed
- All three private schools, University Heights Academy, Heritage Christian Academy and Saints Peter and Paul Catholic School, closed
- Christian County Judge Executive’s Office on a two-hour delay, opening at 10 a.m.
- Christian County Clerk’s Office on a two-hour delay, opening at 10 a.m.
- Christian County Justice Center closed; Circuit Court jurors report Tuesday
- Hopkinsville Municipal Center closed
- Hopkinsville Parks and Recreation office and the Thomas Street Recreation Center closed, while the Planters Bank-Jennie Stuart Health Sportsplex will open at noon
- Hopkinsville Water Environment Authority main office and drive-thru window closed
- Hopkinsville-Christian County Public Library closed
- Christian County Health Department closed
- Christian County Chamber of Commerce offices closed but staff members will respond to email and phone calls
- Pennyroyal Center non-residential centers closed; scheduled services will transition to telehealth
This story may be updated.
Jennifer P. Brown is co-founder, publisher and editor of Hoptown Chronicle. You can reach her at editor@hoptownchronicle.org. Brown was a reporter and editor at the Kentucky New Era, where she worked for 30 years. She is a co-chair of the national advisory board to the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues, governing board past president for the Kentucky Historical Society, and co-founder of the Kentucky Open Government Coalition. She serves on the Hopkinsville History Foundation's board.
