KNOX COUNTY, Tenn — When Marie and Rick Miller woke up on Saturday morning, their house was 42 degrees Fahrenheit inside. For more than two days, they had no power, no lights and no heat.
"It has not been fun at all," Marie Miller said. "We're raising two grandkids and we've got my mother-in-law here too. No Christmas dinner, no nothing for us."
But staying warm is not the Millers' only concern. Marie's husband Rick requires peritoneal dialysis treatments.
"When he doesn't do his dialysis, he feels really rough," Marie said. "[We] have a machine that I need electricity for, to do this."
Instead, she's had to help him do his daily treatments manually — in the dark.
"The only way to heat it is to sit in front of the fireplace and sit there and keep shaking it," Marie said. "I have had to do that four different times. It's been rough."
Marie said that she's made repeated calls to KUB asking for help. But as of Saturday afternoon, she was still unsure when their power would be restored.
"It's cold, I am feeling uncomfortable," Rick Miller said. "It would be nice for the power to come back."
Over in South Knoxville, the Biggs family is waiting for power too.
"It's freezing, absolutely freezing," Ernest Biggs said. "We have a woodstove and we can burn wood to stay warm."
His mother lives down the hill and lost electricity too. She's been staying with Ernest and Teresa until her power comes back on.
"No access to electricity doesn't allow her to use her breathing machine so she's in a bad spot," Ernest Biggs said. "Luckily, we've had an adapter that hooks up to the car to where we can plug a breathing machine in and allow her to use it in the car."
His wife Teresa Biggs has been trying to make the best out of their situation.
"We were blessed to be able to cook because some people are not eating," Teresa Biggs said. "We've got copper pans and a brick oven that goes on top of our stove."
She also had a battery-powered radio and extra lights to help them see at night.
In a statement Saturday afternoon, KUB said downed trees and other damage from the snow have slowed crews, but that restoration efforts will continue until at least Sunday afternoon.