Gather ‘round children and let me tell you the story of the Ice Storm of 1994. When all hell broke loose in Memphis and Shelby County.

Sort of like today.

While it was 28 years ago, there is a generation or two who weren’t around or are too young to remember. For those of us who endured it, the mess is hard to forget.

I remember riding through Germantown neighborhoods with the late Police Chief Eddie Boatwright seeing the trees bent over – well, the ones that hadn’t broken already. The evergreens – as they are today – were particularly vulnerable to the heavy ice accumulating on their dense limbs.

The weight left a lot of trees, limbs and debris in roads along with snapping power lines.

One of the things that stands out is the sound of the trees breaking, sounding like gunshots across the neighborhood.

Then there were the power outages that lasted for days and days. Once you get past flipping on the light switch and realizing there is no electricity, you also realize the heat isn’t working. Then that there is no way to cook on stoves or in ovens. Coffeemakers don’t work. Finally, you are struck with the realization that opening the refrigerator or freezer lets some of the cold escape, even if only open for a brief moment.

A lot of food was cooked on grills so it didn’t spoil.

One particular episode was in our cove in Cordova. My next door neighbor had purchased a pay-per-view event but was without electricity. Another neighbor at the end of the cove had a generator. A string of extension cords stretched through the cove provided electricity so we could at least watch the event.

Like today, schools closed. City offices closed. Businesses closed early. The city was pretty much brought to a standstill with families bunking together at a home that had electricity. A lot of firewood was burned during the troublesome times.

But things have changed a lot in almost 30 years. Back then, if we went to family or friends to survive the cold of homes without electricity, we found out if the power had returned by calling our home phone number. If the answering machine picked up, the power was back on.

Today, recharging a cell phone works in your car – if you bought gas before the storm. There are hotspots to work from your computer.

And in 28 years, my wife and I have gotten old enough that when authorities say to “check on the elderly,” our grown children call us to see if we are alright. - Suburbs editor Clay Bailey 

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Classes will be canceled Friday at area schools due to the threats associated with the winter weather. Christian Brothers University and the U of M will also be closed.

Shelby County is providing funds for a new emergency call center building for the suburb.

A Collierville critter is getting time in the state spotlight this week due to his ability to predict spring.

Saint Francis Hospital-Bartlett is ending its birth and delivery services at the suburban location, shifting those to a single location at St. Francis Hospital-Memphis on Park Avenue.

Leaders look to the future to an enhanced Bartlett Station, the business district on the suburb’s western doorstep.

The commission reviewed a plan for 28 acres of Glasgow. The conservation area is on the northern portion of the former Germantown Country Club.

Reaves announced this past weekend that he will seek the suburb’s Position 3 seat held by David Parsons. Parsons has announced he will run for mayor rather than seek another term as alderman.

“I believe the new Ford plant is definitely going to put some pressure on (Shelby County’s) eastern suburbs,” said Donald Anthony, who replaces Richard Donovan.

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