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If you've watched college football in the past 20 years or so, or the NFL on prime recently,
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and you've seen, or at least heard, analyst Kirk Herbstreet breaking down plays and tendencies,
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and providing color for fans watching at home.
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Well, on Tuesday, Herbstreet took some time out of his schedule to talk to AccuWeather
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about a different topic.
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Herbstreet is a Nashville, Tennessee resident, an area hard hit by the ice storm that swept
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through the south and the southeast two weekends ago to talk about his and his family's
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Thousands of families in the Nashville area faced more than a week without power in
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frigid weather after the biggest winter storm of the season brought Arctic air and dangerous
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The southern side of a massive winter storm produced significant ice accumulations, snapping
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trees and power lines, and heavily straining electricity infrastructure across the region
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from January 23rd through the 26th.
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Now, Herbstreet told AccuWeather on Tuesday, I had never seen anything like it.
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During peak impacts, over 1 million customers were left without power as heavy ice-coated
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lines and poles with Mississippi and Tennessee being the hardest hitstates, icy roads and
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bridges compounded the risks making traveled hazardous and slowing emergency response efforts.
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The storm knocked out power across large portions of the Nashville area and left neighborhoods
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impassable for days.
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The number of customers in the dark has gone down slowly with 400,000 without power on January
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28th, 150,000 still without power on February 3rd.
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Now much of that time for those without power has been spent with temperatures below the
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freezing mark as Arctic air reloads over the Gulf Coast states.
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The Red Cross launched a massive response, sending 2,200 helpers to more than 150 emergency
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shelters, where people have been sleeping for warmth, some have even been sleeping in
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More than 140 people were killed by the storm and the cold that followed it, with 44 of
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those in Tennessee and Mississippi.
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Fatalities included hypothermia, traffic accidents, and some recreational and home deaths.
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Herbstreet is no stranger to harsh winter weather after growing up in Ohio, but the recent
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ice storm that slammed middle Tennessee left even him stunned by its scale and destruction.
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Herbstreet and his wife were out of town when the storm struck, returning to Nashville
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to find downed trees, snapped power lines and blocked roads.
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Police had closed off their street entirely, forcing them to stay in a hotel for more than
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Instead, we thought maybe it would be a day or two, they ended up being eight days.
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When power was finally restored and they were able to return home, the damage was overwhelming.
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Massive trees have been split in half or uprooted entirely by the weight of the ice, crushing
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power lines and in some cases crashing into homes.
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It looked like a bomb was set off.
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Herbstreet set of the darkened streets and debris scattered in every direction.
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Ice storms can be especially destructive in the south, where trees often retain more
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foliage and soil conditions make uprooting more likely.
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Herbstreet said what surprised him most was not just the storm itself, but the sheer
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magnitude of the aftermath.
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He said, I've seen winter storms on your channel before, but until you see it with your
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all-nice, it is really hard to fully appreciate it.
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Below freezing temperatures in the days that followed made recovery even more difficult,
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with lows dipping into the teens and the single digits, while Herbstreet's home avoided
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major structural damage, others in his neighborhood were not as fortunate with trees smashing
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through a few roofs and windows.
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Despite the hardship he pointed to one silver lining, the sense of community that emerged
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He said, good Samaritans were out with chainsaws just trying to help people drive through
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Herbstreet checked on elderly residents, shared generators, and coordinated assistance
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through group text messages.
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Herbstreet said the experience has permanently changed how he views natural disasters, especially
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those affecting communities far from the national spotlight.
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As Nashville continues its long recovery, Herbstreet hopes people outside the region understand
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that the impacts of major winter storms do not end when the headlines fade.
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He said there are still people without power right now.
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If there is anything any of us can do to help in this disaster or any other, I know I'll
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never look at these events the same way again.
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And that means any disaster, not just an ice storm.
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Sometimes during hurricane season, you see some of these storms and you're just taken
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a back by it, and then you get busy with your day.
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After experiencing this firsthand, I know I'll be treating disasters very differently,
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said, and try to have a greater appreciation for what these folks go through.
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You can find regional forecasts and science-based articles at acuether.com and for your
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local forecast at your fingertips, download the Acuether app.
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Enjoy the rest of your day.
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I'll be back tomorrow with more from Acuether.