SWEPCO gives update on storm damage

By submitted, 04/14/20 9:35 AM

At 4:30 p.m. Monday, approximately 29,700 customers remain without power after three waves of severe storms swept across SWEPCO’s service territory on Easter Sunday. At the peak, 64,000 customers were without power.

The outages include 21,200 customers in Texas, 7,900 in Louisiana and 600 in Arkansas.

Crews are working to restore power as safely and quickly as possible. Additional AEP and contract crews are joining the restoration effort.

The first line of storms left 22,000 customers without power Sunday morning, mostly in Texas and Louisiana. Power had been restored to 14,000 customers by the afternoon. However, more storms struck Texas, Louisiana and Arkansas during the late afternoon and evening, pushing the total number of customers without power to 64,000 by 9 p.m. Sunday.

The storms, with high winds and lightning, heavily damaged SWEPCO’s electric system with multiple broken poles and wires down in many locations across three states.  Overall storm restoration will be a multiple-day effort.

Here are number of customers without power by area, with estimated times of restoration for 95% of customers in that city and surrounding communities. NOTE: Your power may be restored sooner.

Texas

·       Gilmer – 2,385 – 10 p.m. Wednesday

·       Gladewater – 4,234 – 10 p.m. Wednesday

·       Henderson – 173 – 10 p.m. Monday

·       Kilgore – 1,318 – 10 p.m. Tuesday

·       Longview – 10,039 – 12 noon Thursday

·       Marshall – 742 – 10 p.m. Tuesday

·       Mineola – 2,194 – 10 p.m. Wednesday

Louisiana

·       Bossier City – 407 – 5 p.m. Tuesday

·       Haughton – 1,852 – 10 p.m. Tuesday

·       Shreveport – 4,483 – 10 p.m. Wednesday

·       Hornbeck – 737 – 10 p.m. tonight (Monday)

·       Mansfield – 407 – 10 p.m. tonight (Monday)

Arkansas

·       Nashville – 571 –  11:59 p.m. (midnight) Tuesday

SAFETY:

KEEP A SAFE DISTANCE: Help utility crews stay safe and healthy while working to restore your power. Maintaining at least six feet of physical distance between yourself and SWEPCO field personnel as we all play a crucial role in preventing the spread of coronavirus.

DOWNED POWER LINES: Never touch a downed utility wire, no matter how harmless it looks. It can be difficult to distinguish between a power line and a cable or telephone line. All downed lines should be considered energized and dangerous. And don’t touch anything in contact with the line, such as trees, fences or puddles of water, since they can conduct electricity. Keep children and pets away from this potential hazard. Call SWEPCO to report any downed lines or equipment.

PORTABLE GENERATORS: If you use a portable or RV generator, do not plug the generator into your circuit box. Portable generators “backfeed” electricity up the line and risk the lives of repair workers and the public. Follow the manufacturers’ instructions carefully, and plug essential appliances directly into the generator.

OUTAGE INFO:

SWEPCO Mobile App – Report outages, check outage status, and more. Download at App store or Google Play.

SWEPCO Alerts – Get an email or text message with the latest info for your home or business. See SWEPCO.com/Alerts.

SWEPCO.com – outage map, report outages, safety information