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Kootenai Medical Center was swamped with victims of the region's ice storm. But the influx was less from the injured and the ailing. Instead, the hospital was flooded with the hungry and the cold.

1. Stan Larderbaugh clears a path for his car in Spokane's Cannon Hill neighborhood, which was hit hard by Tuesday's ice storm. Photo by Colin Mulvany/The Spokesman-Review 2. Karen Watson digs a path to her home in Sandpoint, which has gotten more than its share of snow in the last few days. Photo by Jesse Tinsley/The Spokesman-Review 3. Scott Gittel removes limbs that were torn from his parents' trees on 12th Street in Coeur d'Alene. Photo by Craig Buck/The Spokesman-Review

1. Stan Larderbaugh clears a path for his car in Spokane's Cannon Hill neighborhood, which was hit hard by Tuesday's ice storm. Photo by Colin Mulvany/The Spokesman-Review 2. In a scene played out across the Inland Northwest, Katie and Michael May, 3 and 6, curl up in front of the fireplace in their South Hill home. Photo by Colin Mulvany/The Spokesman-Review 3. Gene Condon, 82, tries to remove his chain saw from a limb that fell in the intersection near his home at Pacific and Poplar in Browne's Addition on Wednesday. Photo by Dan Pelle/The Spokesman-Review

The splintered boughs that toppled from Spokane's urban forest Tuesday quickly turned to gold for some. Workmen armed with chain saws and pickup trucks roamed neighborhoods Wednesday taking advantage of the sudden demand for cleanup.

Tim Middlebrook waits in a line to unload debris at Manito Park. Photo by Christopher Anderson/The Spokesman-Review

On-line "survivor stories" are posted on Virtually Northwest at http://www.VirtuallyNW.com. To share your story, or read about others, just click on the "Chatter" box in the comprehensive on-line coverage of the storm's impact.

Helping hands. Residents and neighbors along the 800 block of West 21st help remove large tree limbs from the street Wednesday morning. The old trees along the avenue in the Cannon Hill neighborhood were hit especially hard by Tuesday's ice storm. Photo by Colin Mulvany/The Spokesman-Review

The first night, it was an adventure. Light candles, play cards, talk, read a book, enjoy the silence. No TVs. No stereos. No bleeping computers. Just life, shared with those who make it worthwhile. The first morning, people emerged blinking from their cold and darkened homes, staring in amazement at the fallen wires and splintered trees, sheathed in ice, dazzling in the sun. Instinctively, folks who barely know their neighbors began to work together on a massive cleanup chore.

Linemen Dennis Scott and Bill Sharp work to restore power to Idaho's Blue Bay. Photo by Craig Buck/The Spokesman-Review

A word to those without power: Be smart. If in doubt about food, throw it out. If it crackles and sparks, don't touch it. If you are cold, put clothes on. If a stop light is out, don't run it.

The newborn was all dressed up with no place to go. Newman Lake relatives eagerly awaited the homecoming of the family's first grandchild Wednesday.

The buzz of chain saws replaced the scream of sirens Wednesday as Inland Northwest residents began cleaning up after Tuesday's ice storm. Long lines formed at hardware, grocery and discount stores as people stocked up on candles, kerosene, batteries and blankets. Nearly 70,000 Washington Water Power Co. customers prepared to face another cold night inside dark houses with only sandwiches for dinner and battery-powered radios for entertainment.

Tough sledding. Matthew Sketo, 12, gets a lift on his way to Holy Family Hospital on Wednesday after suffering an apparent broken leg while sledding in Suncrest. Rescue personnel had to carry the injured boy up the popular sledding hill. Photo by Sandra Bancroft-Billings/The Spokesman-Review

When Black Sheep Sporting Goods and Toys in Coeur d'Alene opened at 8 a.m. Wednesday, people were waiting to get in. Most were out of luck. They were hoping to buy something that'd sold out the day before.

A pile of debris is all that remains of a house that was destroyed by a mudslide Tuesday near Roseburg, Ore. Four people were killed. Photo by Associated Press

Shawna Dedman feeds a little breakfast to 5-month-old Kyla Albertson while behind them 6-year-old Samantha Wakeley finishes her muffin. They are surrounded by Red Cross workers and others at the Millwood School shelter on East Grace. Photo by Christopher Anderson/The Spokesman-Review

The buzz of chain saws replaced the scream of sirens Wednesday as Inland Northwest residents began cleaning up after Tuesday's ice storm. Long lines formed at hardware, grocery and discount stores as people stocked up on candles, batteries and blankets. More than 70,000 WWP customers prepared to face another cold night inside dark houses, with only sandwiches for dinner and batterypowered radios for entertainment.

Road crews distribute portable stop signs throughout Spokane. Photo by Dan McComb/The Spokesman-Review

1. Roger Holthaus, 57, a lineman with Inland Power for more than 30 years, works at restoring power near 32nd and Bowdish on Wednesday. 2. Rottweiler Kato and U S West Communications phoneman Jim Hopkins size each other up in a yard at 18th and Thor. Hopkins was able to toss the phone line over Kato's head, avoiding the need to run through the yard. Photo by Dan Pelle/The Spokesman-Review