By Nick Brockman, Messenger Sports Reporter nbrockman@the-messenger.com
Nearly 100 miles away from home without power or a working cell phone, former Hopkins County Central baseball player Will Cartwright abandoned his Murray State University residence Jan. 29 to see how the rest of his family in Madisonville was handling the effects of last week's winter storm.
When Cartwright attempted to enter his home, he found it empty and darkened.
"I went to my house and no one was there," Cartwright said. "I couldn't get in because we get in through an electronic key pad."
Fortunately, Cartwright found someone who knew where his family had gone.
"I actually saw my neighbor across the street, Dr. French, cutting down trees, so I went over and asked him where my parents were," he said. "They said they had gone to my aunt's in Hopkinsville and that Hopkinsville still had water, still had power and everything.
Cartwright and one of his Racer teammates then made the trek to Hopkinsville and stayed there for a couple days before returning back to Murray.
"I kind of made a big triangle between Madisonville, Hopkins-ville and Murray, but I eventually found them," Cartwright said of locating his family.
When Cartwright attempted to enter his home, he found it empty and darkened.
"I went to my house and no one was there," Cartwright said. "I couldn't get in because we get in through an electronic key pad."
Fortunately, Cartwright found someone who knew where his family had gone.
"I actually saw my neighbor across the street, Dr. French, cutting down trees, so I went over and asked him where my parents were," he said. "They said they had gone to my aunt's in Hopkinsville and that Hopkinsville still had water, still had power and everything.
Cartwright and one of his Racer teammates then made the trek to Hopkinsville and stayed there for a couple days before returning back to Murray.
"I kind of made a big triangle between Madisonville, Hopkins-ville and Murray, but I eventually found them," Cartwright said of locating his family.
For Western Kentucky University runner Barry Quinn, communication with family in Hopkins County did not come any easier.
Quinn, who graduated from Madisonville-North Hopkins, said he had no cell phone service to reach his parents but knew they would find a way to contact him if the situation became serious enough.
Quinn's family found refuge in Vincennes, Ind., where Quinn's father, Mike, an assistant for the Maroon football team, has family.
By Friday, Quinn had made contact with his parents, but his roommate wasn't as lucky. Quinn said his roommate traveled all the way back to his home in Owensboro to check on his parents and missed a day of practice and school in the process.
Despite the weather, Western Kentucky did not cancel classes and Quinn said, "That was quite an uproar."
The conditions did force the Hilltopper track team to miss Wednesday's practice session though because the track was covered in ice.
Practice went on as planned at Murray as Sunday marked the first day baseball players could begin official spring practices. With school canceled until Monday and no way to contact their coach, many players left Kentucky for warmer spots thinking practice would also be postponed.
Cartwright received word his power was restored on Friday night and around noon on Saturday he received a call from his coach saying practice was still on.
"All these guys were in Florida and we were spread out in Illinois, Missouri, Tennessee," Cartwright said. "We were everywhere ... Some of the guys got back at 4 a.m. the day we had practice, but we got our practice in and we're looking good."
The week began innocently enough for Cartwright, just like many other weeks at school. That is until the second wave of winter weather battered Murray's campus late Tuesday night.
"We went to class (Tuesday) and everything was fine," he said. "I was actually up until midnight and then the weather hit. I woke up Wednesday morning and everything was shut down.
"Phones weren't working, nothing. I got up, looked around and we didn't have anything to do, so we just made a big fire pit right behind our fraternity house and we just stayed up there for a day."
Initially, daily routines continued at Western Kentucky until communications became disrupted.
"The day we didn't have cell phone service people were going crazy, going insane because no cell phones," Quinn said.
As of Wednesday, Quinn said his parents' home was without power, but his dad wants him to focus on school and running instead of returning to help with the clean-up efforts.
"We have a power line from the back of the house and a tree branch fell on that," Quinn said. "That connected the power line to our house and it snapped it in half.
"They have to get an electrician to connect the wire back. Then, they have to get somebody from the city to inspect it and OK it, and then they need to get Kentucky Utilities to come out and turn it on."
As the ordeal continues to unfold, Quinn said he's gained a little more perspective.
"All in all, it makes you appreciate what you have when something like this does happen," he said. "It makes you thankful for the possessions you have and really how dependent we've become on electricity."
Cartwright said he spoke with his family on Wednesday and they were without power as well. His grandparents have been riding out the week in Clarksville, Tenn.
Although Cartwright spent less time in the dark than his parents, it was enough to help him understand how precious some luxuries truly are.
"You realize how hard it is to live without communication like how they did back in the late 19th century, early 20th century and how they lived," he said. "It makes you appreciate the big things in life."
Quinn, who graduated from Madisonville-North Hopkins, said he had no cell phone service to reach his parents but knew they would find a way to contact him if the situation became serious enough.
Quinn's family found refuge in Vincennes, Ind., where Quinn's father, Mike, an assistant for the Maroon football team, has family.
By Friday, Quinn had made contact with his parents, but his roommate wasn't as lucky. Quinn said his roommate traveled all the way back to his home in Owensboro to check on his parents and missed a day of practice and school in the process.
Despite the weather, Western Kentucky did not cancel classes and Quinn said, "That was quite an uproar."
The conditions did force the Hilltopper track team to miss Wednesday's practice session though because the track was covered in ice.
Practice went on as planned at Murray as Sunday marked the first day baseball players could begin official spring practices. With school canceled until Monday and no way to contact their coach, many players left Kentucky for warmer spots thinking practice would also be postponed.
Cartwright received word his power was restored on Friday night and around noon on Saturday he received a call from his coach saying practice was still on.
"All these guys were in Florida and we were spread out in Illinois, Missouri, Tennessee," Cartwright said. "We were everywhere ... Some of the guys got back at 4 a.m. the day we had practice, but we got our practice in and we're looking good."
The week began innocently enough for Cartwright, just like many other weeks at school. That is until the second wave of winter weather battered Murray's campus late Tuesday night.
"We went to class (Tuesday) and everything was fine," he said. "I was actually up until midnight and then the weather hit. I woke up Wednesday morning and everything was shut down.
"Phones weren't working, nothing. I got up, looked around and we didn't have anything to do, so we just made a big fire pit right behind our fraternity house and we just stayed up there for a day."
Initially, daily routines continued at Western Kentucky until communications became disrupted.
"The day we didn't have cell phone service people were going crazy, going insane because no cell phones," Quinn said.
As of Wednesday, Quinn said his parents' home was without power, but his dad wants him to focus on school and running instead of returning to help with the clean-up efforts.
"We have a power line from the back of the house and a tree branch fell on that," Quinn said. "That connected the power line to our house and it snapped it in half.
"They have to get an electrician to connect the wire back. Then, they have to get somebody from the city to inspect it and OK it, and then they need to get Kentucky Utilities to come out and turn it on."
As the ordeal continues to unfold, Quinn said he's gained a little more perspective.
"All in all, it makes you appreciate what you have when something like this does happen," he said. "It makes you thankful for the possessions you have and really how dependent we've become on electricity."
Cartwright said he spoke with his family on Wednesday and they were without power as well. His grandparents have been riding out the week in Clarksville, Tenn.
Although Cartwright spent less time in the dark than his parents, it was enough to help him understand how precious some luxuries truly are.
"You realize how hard it is to live without communication like how they did back in the late 19th century, early 20th century and how they lived," he said. "It makes you appreciate the big things in life."
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