PARKERSBURG - The impact from Superstorm Sandy Tuesday has been power outages throughout the area as well as snow and rain on roads.
Although snow fell in Parkersburg, mixed with rain, nothing accumulated as the ground was still warm.
Parkersburg Mayor Bob Newell said city crews have had no issues with the weather.
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Photo by Michael Erb
A snow-covered pickup truck drives along Juliana Street in Parkersburg Tuesday amid snow flurries.
He said road crews are on standby.
There is no salt on the roads, as the pavement is too warm to hold snow and ice.
"We are monitoring it and have salt trucks ready to roll," Newell said.
Newell said the only potential issue is the wind. If the wind picks up, officials could be dealing with downed power lines and blocked roads.
Surrounding counties had issues with falling trees, limited power outages and more snow accumulation, especially in the counties to the south of Wood County.
Walter Smittle, director of the Office of Emergency Services for Jackson County, said there was a line around Ripley where 4-5 inches of snow were on the ground in areas.
''To the south of that, it just increases,'' he said of snow accumulation.
To the north, it is more of a rain and snow mix with not as much accumulation, Smittle said.
Crews have been dealing with cars sliding off the road and into guardrails in Jackson County. The roads are being treated.
At one point, Jackson County had a maximum of 4,243 people without power. As of 6 p.m., that number was down to 3,300.
Once power transformers are repaired, Smittle expects the power to come back more quickly.
Bo Wriston, director of the Wirt County Office of Emergency Services, said things went well Tuesday with only a few problems.
Throughout the day, around 210 people were without power, but most of those had been restored by 3:45 p.m.
The weather service is still calling for the possibility of 2-6 inches of snowfall in parts of the county.
The Little Kanawha River is not expected to flood as it is expected to crest at 22 feet where flood stage is at 36 feet, Wriston said.
''We are at normal operations right now,'' he said of schools being in session and plans moving forward for the area to have trick-or-trick.
Wirt County officials today will be sending around 60 cots to Randolph County, an area harder hit by weather. The project is being done through the cooperation of the Wirt County Office of Emergency Services, the Wirt/Elizabeth Volunteer Fire Department, the Wirt County Sheriff's Office and the Wirt County Community Emergency Response Team.
Ritchie County experienced light snow while the water level in the Hughes River is up.
''We will be watching it through the night,'' said James White, director of Emergency Services for Ritchie County. ''(The river level) is higher than normal.''
Power outages have been reported in the Cairo area with southern parts of the county having issues with their electricity.
Ritchie County schools were in session and no one was stranded.
A person answering the phone at the Pleasants County Emergency Communications Center said things were relatively calm in Pleasants County.
They experienced rain and snow throughout the morning, but had not had any power outages. The roads are clear, but wet, he said.
Melissa Gilbert, the Emergency Services director for Roane County, reported trees down around the area and slick roads. They have had snow amounts of 6-8 inches in the higher elevations of the county and 2-4 inches in the lower elevations.
''It is still snowing,'' Gilbert said at around 3 p.m.
Power outages were being reported, especially in the southern part of the county. Gilbert said AEP, which supplies power to the southern part of the county, is reporting around 96 percent in the coverage area in Roane County without power compared to around seven percent in the northern part of the county.
''No one is stranded,'' Gilbert said. ''The roads are slick, but clear. Some are slushy and wet, but still passable.
''It is nothing like what is happening in the southern part of the state.''
Kathy Wood, Emergency Services director in Calhoun County, said they have trees down. There were around 377 in the county without power as of 3:15 p.m.
The emergency services office has not received a lot of calls for assistance.
''It appears people were well prepared,'' Wood said.
Since the derecho in June when areas of Calhoun County were without power for 19 days, people have learned to have food, water and necessities on hand, Wood said.
Officials are keeping their eyes on water levels in the Little Kanawha River.
''If it continues to rain, we could have problems,'' Wood said.
