Beware of scams

Stoddard County Sheriff Carl Hefner warned residents about potential scams regarding debris clean-up after the storm at a meeting of community and local government leaders Tuesday afternoon. Presiding Commission Greg Mathis chaired the meeting which included updates from various entities in the county.

Hefner said he already had reports of people who were asked to pay in advance for debris clean-up with the promise that FEMA would reimburse them for the costs. Hefner said FEMA would not reimburse individuals for clean-up. He said residents should be on their guard as clean-up begins, and make sure the person and business they are dealing with is reputable.

Stoddard County Ambulance District (SCAD) Director David Cooper said using burners from a gas range for heating was dangerous, He urged anyone who does not have electricity to go to a shelter instead of using this method to heat their house due to carbon monoxide poisoning.

Bloomfield Mayor Raymond McAnally borrowed a carbon monoxide detector from the Dexter Fire Department because of concerns at the house of an elderly woman in Bloomfield who was heating with range gas burners and using kerosene lamps. He said the detectors showed that carbon monoxide levels were dangerous in that home and measures had to be taken to alleviate that problem.

While most people in Stoddard County now have electricity, areas such as Penermon, areas in the south part of the county, an area near Puxico and many rural residents still don't have power. These people should not use gas ranges for heating, Cooper stated.

Most of the concern in the county now is for Penermon and areas in the southeast portion of the county. Stoddard County 911 Services Administrator Carol Moreland said SEMO Electric told her that it could be a week or more before the community has power restored. She said areas along Highway 153 "are really bad" and will require reconstruction of the power lines. That area could be without power for some time. Moreland said that power had been on and then back off for awhile in Bell City and efforts were being made to make sure everyone has power by Wednesday. Bell City is served primarily by SEMO Electric.

It was reported that Grayridge has some electricity restored. The area south of the town which is fed from a substation near Penermon is still without power. There are pockets all around Puxico that are without power, according to Commissioner Frank Sifford. Sifford said he's been told that as many as 600 people in that area are without electricity.

Most of the power in the Dexter area was restored by late Tuesday. Ameren said they anticipated 100 percent of their customers would have power by Wednesday. Anyone who does not have power restored by Wednesday evening should contact Ameren to report an outage.

Moreland said that Ozark Border Electric told her there were 800 people out of power on Monday and that number had been reduced to 600 by Tuesday. Workers were focusing on the Chalk Bluff and Country Club areas of Dexter on Tuesday.

A release from Ozark Border said that fresh crews were coming from electric cooperatives in Illinois and from a private contractor, Pike Electric. Only one Ozark substation remains without power, and that is one in the Malden area, "which was ground zero for the ice storm" the release stated. Ozark Border estimated there were 4,300 still without power, and 3,000 of those were in the Malden area.

Ozark Border Manager John Farris said sleds were brought in to move its huge trucks across muddy fields. On Monday crews worked in knee deep mud to repair lines located in the middle of fields where rice is grown."

The release stated, "At this time, there is no timetable for complete power restoration."

Stoddard County Emergency Services Director John Prance said the distribution center was down to 40 MREs, but 500 more had been ordered. He said EMS has also received 500 blankets for distribution. Deputy Sheriff Tommy Horton asked how those blankets were going to be distributed. Prance said they were being delivered to residents of Penermon and others in that area. They are also available to shelters as needed. Prance said there was plenty of bottled water as well. All EMS inquiries should be directed to the SCAD office in Dexter.

Crews from the Mingo Americorps (formerly Job Corps) are working to help the elderly and others in need with debris clean-up. Prance said these crews have chain saws and are helping with clean-up in the county. He said they are adding three more crews. Anyone who is need of help with debris clean-up can call the SCAD office (624-4528) to schedule a crew.

Law enforcement agencies said things are getting back to normal and they were returning to regular shifts. Dexter Police Chief Paul Haubold said at an earlier meeting that the biggest problem was traffic on Business 60. He said people should be prepared for the traffic and be courteous and patient.

Puxico EMS Director John Roach said Puxico had 12 houses still out of electricity. He said people were still coming into the warming shelter, and it remained open. Warming shelters are also open in Bernie, Bloomfield and at the Richland Schools.

Mathis said he had visited Penermon and they were especially "hard hit." He said many of the elderly were reluctant to leave their homes, and everyone focused on providing as much as possible to that community. Those living in Penermon can take advantage of the warming shelter and hot food being offered at the Richland Schools, Mathis said.

Sifford reported that the Department of Conservation had completed work in Castor Township. The department provided two dozers for road clearance and also other equipment to Castor Township. Sifford said all roads in the area were open, even though some may be one lane.

He said the county wanted to thank the Conservation Department for their assistance, because those roads would still be closed without their assistance.