Waiting on Ice: Residents React to the January 2024 Ice Storm

Editor’s Note: Upon publication, a representative for Riverstone Mobile Home Park in Cottage Grove responded that, fortunately, no deaths occurred there.

While we at DSM do not consider ourselves qualified enough to declare this latest winter storm that began on Friday, Jan. 12 as “Snowmaggeddon 2.0,” what we have seen, experienced, and have heard from local community members indicates that the designation might not be far off. Perhaps this is “Icemaggedon 1.0,” instead. 

On Jan. 13, the City of Eugene had declared a State of Emergency as a result of the damage brought on by the storm, including innumerable falling trees and limbs on homes and roadways. For many, the power went out. Later the same day, Egan Warming Centers, who’s volunteer base was stretched incredibly thin due to the unsafe road conditions were activated.

On Jan. 14, spun-out cars, a few accidents, and drivers putting on chains in the travel lanes caused I-5 North to come to a complete standstill. It was reported that some travelers were stuck for up to 17 hours. When the roads reopened, some were still asleep in their cars, further slowing progress. 

Two days later, on Jan. 16, Governor Tina Kotek declared a State of Emergency for Lane County. She would do the same for the entire state on Jan. 19. 

On Jan. 17, Springfield alerted its residents within the East and West Springfield Utility Board distribution system that they were under a Boil Water Advisory Notice after its water treatment system was damaged. It has since been lifted. 

For many within this area, there is still no power and most modern homes and apartments feature nothing but electricity-run appliances. Living through this storm requires preparation, but also, adequate warning. Human beings have an optimal thermoregulation range and freezing temperatures are at the extreme of the low level threshold. 

When the power goes out during an ice storm, there are few other alternatives for heat and light — two necessary elements for survival. Fire produced from both wood and gas are the alternatives but, for many, those alternatives are too expensive, putting both just out of reach when the lights go off. This forces folks out into the elements—walking or driving—in search of better chances.

Caught under the weight of the ice, trees began shedding branches or falling without warning leaving residents and businesses vulnerable to the damages, in certain situations the lack of power could be deadly. For some, the loss of power can be short-lived while others still remain without and, in Springfield, the government can say “don’t drink the water.”

For over a week, Oregonians just simply tried to survive and, unfortunately, it’s too early to conclusively say who did and who didn’t and what the total damage is, but it’s clear that many feel the government’s response has been inadequate, to say the least.

Local Residents & Businesses React

On Saturday, Jan. 13, one business in Eugene—Big City Gamin’ located on Willamette St.—could see what could happen to the community’s unhoused and those without access to warmth and sprung into action. The next day, they posted to Facebook that they were seeking donations, and community members immediately started to drop off food and supplies. 

“Being a business located downtown we already deal with people sleeping around the outside of our [deck] at night,” a representative for the business said. “With the severity of the weather coming in [the owner] decided that [they] were unwilling to take the chance of letting someone freeze to death literally on the outside wall of our deck when they could be warm on the inside.”

In total, over the four days they provided shelter, they were also able to serve more than 600 hot meals.  

Eugene resident Andy Becker-Henske said that their family has been okay through the storm and count themselves “lucky” to not have been without power. What they are really concerned about is the city’s response to the crisis in regard to the houseless community. 

“The lack of consideration or infrastructure for the houseless community is a blight on the reputation of the ‘welcoming city of Eugene,’” he said. “We have the money to do the hostile architecture we have in place to halt camping, we have empty buildings everywhere. Use those especially in times of bad weather and higher demand for shelter. Housing should be a human right.”

One mutual aid activist who wished to remain anonymous experienced some of the interactions between the Eugene Police Department and houseless community members in the preceding days of the storm. 

While doing mutual aid, they were cited along with the unhoused for trespassing. Even more problematic is that the unhoused were told to leave their homemade shelters just two days before the storm.

“These people have lived there for over two years, they have built homes,” they said. “When EPD and [the railroad police] came, they started slicing peoples’ tarps [and] breaking doors off homes.”

When it came time for their court date, there was no direct communication from the courthouse about whether or not they would be open and, instead, they found out from a Facebook post that it was closed. For them, they had access to a phone. For the other unhoused who were cited, it is unknown if they ever received notification of the closure. 

Online, community solidarity was evidenced by a Redditor who reported seeing numerous yellow extension cords running from one side of a Southeast Eugene neighborhood to the other: neighbors were sharing power 

For Eugenians still without power, EWEB said on Jan. 18 that it will take up to another seven days to fully restore electricity. As of Jan. 22, there were approximately 2,500 still powerless. 

In Springfield, especially the Thurston Hills neighborhood, the city was “ravaged” by the storm as Skyler Davis described to DSM.

As someone who uses a BIPAP machine, Davis said they were especially worried that their power would go out for more than a few hours at a time but, fortunately, it hadn’t so far. 

Regarding the city’s response to the storm, Davis said that they were hopeful this would be a wakeup call to the local government: this is going to happen again and they need to be better prepared. 

“As we continue to have inclement weather each winter, it is imperative that we start preparing a response plan earlier, before we start experiencing destructive forces,” Davis said. “If we can do that, we may have a better chance next time with dealing better with ice and snow.”

When asked what those efforts would look like, Davis said that “large, overhanging branches” are of big concern along with planning ahead of time to lay salt down on the roads before the weather conditions make it unsafe or impossible.

Further complicating the already difficult time that Thurston residents were experiencing was the spotty cellular service. For Davis, his messages to his fiancé asking if he could stay with him were never delivered. 

A significant portion of the Thurston Hills neighborhood was still without power eight days after the storm initially began. 

For Laura Smith, another Thurston Hills resident, the experience has been nothing short of “harrowing.” 

“We spent Saturday night listening to trees snap and pop and then fall. I [surely thought] they would come through the roof. Nothing did, I thought the worst was over. It was not,” said Smith. “The worst is being completely abandoned by your city and the electric company that we pay to serve us.”

Smith is, especially, upset about the lack of communication from the Springfield Utility Board and said that the initial updates were only coming from Facebook posts. 

“I would also like to mention that there is no online portal to report outages,” Smith said. “There is a phone, but it was busy for days and hanging up on people.” Notably, SUB did not even have an online outage map until Jan. 19. 

She said that it “added insult to injury” when SUB, finally, held a press conference—an optimistic sign of transparency—on Jan. 19 only for it not to include a question-and-answer section. 

“Again, there is no guidance, no answers,” she said, adding that “they did plead for us to be nicer and that we should hire our own crews to repair damage.”

Smith counts herself as lucky, though. Despite a continuous loss of power for over a week, the loss of her three neon Tetras, and the anxiety that comes attached, she said that her “concern lies with our most at risk, seniors and the disabled.” These concerns were exacerbated by unconfirmed reports going around social media that an elderly couple had been found deceased in their Springfield home from hypothermia. 

As of Jan. 20, Smith’s power was restored. Until then, her family had relied on the generosity of a friend who lent them a generator.

Another Springfield resident, Lizzy Utterback, also said that the current system was, obviously, not working. 

“It’s clear that individual people within the government and utility companies are working very hard and doing their best and that we have a failing system,” she said. “It’s important for us to see how our systems work when they are stressed so we can evaluate the points of failure and make improvements.”

What Utterback is most concerned about, however, is the lack of communication from SUB. 

“Our government must improve their communications and outreach,” Utterback said. “There isn’t an online power outage map or option to report outages online. No one can get through to SUB via phone. SUB’s communications are vague and people don’t know when they can expect help to arrive.”

In Eastern Springfield, where the water boiling order was in effect, DSM was told of another example of community solidarity. One resident, E. McIlsey and their family were able to get out of the city early and head to their family but not before letting their neighbors know about the available food they had. 

“Luckily we had our inside freezer food in chests outside so I was able to tell our neighbors to please use it,” they said. “Like, it’s really hard that we’re going to have to replace all that food but I’m relieved it was eaten rather than wasted.”

In return, their neighbors have been watching their home and said they’ll let them know when their porch light comes back on. Until then, McIlsey said that their main concern was busted pipes but that they would have to wait until their return to inspect the damage. 

While they admit the drive out of Springfield and into rural Oregon was “terrifying,” they said that, in the end, getting to family was the right decision. “We don’t have gas—only electric—so we wouldn’t have been able to boil water.” Making matters even more dire were their two children under two-years-old. 

McIlsey, too, counts them and their family to be lucky and able to safely exit Springfield while also doing what they could do to help their neighbors at home. 

A Rural Plight

For rural residents outside of the Eugene-Springfield area, the impact of the storm has, expectedly, severely cut them off from public services. Those most at risk during this storm are our rural community members who have, essentially, been cut-off from much needed services, including electricity. For many, residents have been without power since the storm began. 

In Veneta, Jessica Monroe has lost power five times over the course of the storm — eight hours was the longest stretch and 20 minutes was the shortest. Fortunately, Monroe said that it’s mostly been on and she has been able to at least cook in-between outages. In the past, Monroe said she would set up an entire outdoor “camp kitchen” but couldn’t this year as her back doors were frozen shut. 

Heat is the main issue, though. Like many, Monroe’s only source of heat requires electricity. 

“I live in an older mobile home which I lovingly refer to as my sardine can,” she said. “It does not hold temp for anyone or any weather. Heating and cooling is a struggle but manageable with electricity.”

For other rural residents, further out from any major city, their struggles have been exacerbated by a continuous loss of power and a seemingly absent government to help.  

In Cottage Grove, the situation is dire and many are still without power. As of Jan. 19, the Red Cross has established a site at City Hall. 

Jeremy Golden, a Cottage Grove resident and member of the Hopi Tribe, said that the response to the storm was “like a 16-year-old who had never even driven before was pulling an engine and rebuilding it with no experience.” 

“Playing a disaster by ear is unacceptable,” he said. “There [were] plenty of warnings in advance [of] what was going to occur and no one tried to make a plan to assist the community.” 

One mutual aid activist who spoke to DSM under the condition of anonymity said that they were aware of deaths.

An unconfirmed death was allegedly the result of carbon monoxide poisoning from someone attempting to stay warm. 

The first confirmed death during the storm was on Jan. 15 when it was reported that one person perished in a house fire just outside of Cottage Grove. The second came on Jan. 19 when it was reported that an individual had died during a house fire, also near Cottage Grove. While its cause is still under investigation, it was reported to likely have to do with a generator running in the home’s garage. 

The activist said that they had not had power for seven days until late last night and that any sort of government leadership was absent during that time. 

The activist also described to DSM how individuals had witnessed both the Cottage Grove police and fire departments drop PeaceHealth Cottage Grove Community Medical Center patients off at City Hall where there was a warming shelter. Many of them had not yet received medical care. One woman with a broken arm was told to use a fanny-pack instead of a medical sling. 

“This felt like necropolitics in action,” they said. “Like living a eugenics experiment.” 

DSM attempted to contact PeaceHealth’s Department of Strategic Communications. Upon pressing “1” for “members of the media,” the phone rang for nearly two minutes without an answer or the ability to leave a voicemail. 

The Strained Emergency Department 

As the storm ravaged, those who had access to cellular service or Wi-Fi and were on Facebook likey saw a copy-and-paste post that was going around the Eugene-Springfield community. It read, in full: 

“Reality check! The hospital is absolutely overwhelmed right now with people who are injured because of being out in the elements, either slipping and falling on the ice or being hit by branches, or getting into a car accident. At some point today we had well over 100 people in the emergency department, we only have 57 beds in the emergency department so many of those people were sitting in the waiting room. As I leave tonight, the waiting room continues to be full, and there are ambulance units stacked up to deliver more patients. The hospital was already full before the storm with patients with RSV, Covid, flu and pneumonia. And we also have many patients who cannot leave the hospital because they still do not have power or water, or cannot even access their home to be able to leave the hospital to open up a bed. At the end of the day, please do not leave home unless you absolutely have to, emergency services, and the hospitals are completely overwhelmed. I can attest that 80% of my patient caseload today was there because of a broken bone because of ice. Some people are even breaking bones in their neck which can lead to dangerous and lifelong paralysis. The fact that Lane County has an emergency declaration is not to be taken lightly.”

It is not uncommon for emergency departments to become overwhelmed during extreme storms, however, the experiences described to DSM by a health professional at PeaceHealth Sacred Heart Medical Center RiverBend paint a horrifying picture. 

Prior to the storm, PeaceHealth Sacred Heart Medical Center University District was shuttered in December 2023 citing significant costs and low patient numbers. Now, with only one hospital serving both Springfiend and Eugene, RiverBend was overwhelmed with patients due to the extreme cold and ice. 

The health professional, who spoke under the condition of anonymity for fear of professional retaliation, said that the storm exacerbated an already overwhelmed emergency room from this holiday season’s “RSV, influenza, COVID, and pneumonia” hospitalizations. 

“Our emergency department has 57 rooms,” they said. “On a normal day, the back one-to-two hallways are not regularly open because we do not need to use them.” 

But the storm brought innumerable more people to the ER. 

Now, they said “all the rooms are full, some patients are on gurneys in the hallway, separated by privacy screens.” The rest of them in the waiting room. Many, they said, reported that they had waited up to 10 hours for care. “When I left work [yesterday], there were patients [sitting and laying] on the floor in the hallway,” they added. 

When asked if the closure of the PeaceHealth University District Hospital has had an effect on RiverBend’s caseload, the health professional replied that it was more complicated than that. 

For one, many of the cases that RiverBend was seeing during the storm “were people with broken bones or brain bleeds that needed orthopedics or neurology, and they would’ve had to have been at RiverBend anyways.” On the flip-side, they noted that “the biggest issue is that many of the patients in Eugene that are having mental health [crises] would’ve been kept at the University District hospital.” 

‘Now those patients are in the RiverBend ER or [in] inpatient units at RiverBend,” they said. 

The types of cases RiverBend is seeing has changed as much of the ice has melted away, opening up the ability for the community’s most at-risk to go to the ER. 

“Unfortunately, the past few days, what we are seeing [are patients], particularly elderly or disabled, coming in with hypothermia, [dehydration,] and malnutrition from not having food or water,” they said. “We’re also seeing patients with carbon monoxide poisoning because of improper uses of generators.” 

To them, the city, the county, and the hospital should have communicated and coordinated better and, in doing so, they believe much of the ER strain could have been prevented, or alleviated.

“We knew for five or six days about the storm coming,” they said. “But still, we had difficulty getting stuff to work because of the roads, [and] we started running low on food in the cafeteria for staff or visitors.” 

Additionally, they said that they hadn’t had trash service in several days and weren’t sure when to expect it. “A hospital should be a priority for getting trash service and food deliveries to feed people,” they added. 

The hospital’s response to the storm was also hindered by its—very public—financial struggles and explained that this was unlike what happened in the past. 

“During previous storms, the hospital paid for taxis to get staff to-and-from work. They also paid for some staff to stay in hotels close by the hospital if they did not have power, or were unable to return home,” they said. “But they no longer do that because of financial problems.” 

They added, “If PeaceHealth had some sort of assistance with emergency funding from the city, state, or county, it would be able to help with things like that which could improve staffing.”

However, “at the end of the day, it’s bed capacity,” they said. It didn’t help that many could not be discharged to homes that were without power or water. Ultimately, though, their main concern was for those that need the help the most and that “people that live alone, or are elderly, or are low income, or are disabled, were disproportionately affected.” 

A Final Thought from DSM

There is one county in Oregon that took prevention measures to reduce the damage and impact from this storm, Clackamas County. There are steps that the local government could take to help the community weather these storms reducing both damages and harm. It’s true that those measures take time, labor, and money, but that begs the question:

Do we want to live in a society that’s based on competition for resources and survival of the fittest or in one that survives together through unity?