Fast-moving thunderstorms with strong winds measuring as much as 83 miles per hour swept through the SWEPCO service territory last night, causing 35,000 customers to lose power.
According to Swepco’s Facebook page, the number of outages and estimated times for restoration for our region are:
- New Boston: 124 customers, 8 p.m. tomorrow
- Ashdown: 189 customers, 8 p.m. tomorrow
- DeQueen: 5 customers, 8 p.m. tomorrow
- Nashville: 245 customers, 8 p.m. tomorrow
- Texarkana: 2,113 customers, 8 p.m. tomorrow
At 9 a.m. approximately 13,100 customers were without power, including 2,300 in Arkansas, 8,100 in Louisiana and 2,700 in Texas.
Nearly 800 tree and line personnel are working to repair damage to the system, including crews that have come into the area from Mississippi, Oklahoma and Arkansas. Damage includes downed power lines, broken poles and damaged equipment.
Here are the outage numbers & estimated times of restoration (ETR):
Gilmer: 12 customers, Noon today
Gladewater: 138 customers, 5 p.m. today
Henderson: 163 customers, Noon today
Kilgore: 354 customers, 5 p.m. today
Longview: 125 customers, Noon today
Ashdown: 189 customers, 8 p.m. tomorrow
Mt. Pleasant: 1,579 customers, 8 p.m. tomorrow
New Boston: 124 customers, 8 p.m. tomorrow
DeQueen: 5 customers, 8 p.m. tomorrow
Nashville: 245 customers, 8 p.m. tomorrow
Texarkana: 2,113 customers, 8 p.m. tomorrow
Bossier City: 1,035 customers, 10 p.m. tomorrow
Haughton: 1,268 customers, 10 p.m. tomorrow
Shreveport: 4,440 customers, 10 p.m. tomorrow
Vivian: 130 customers, 5 p.m. today
Hornbeck: 37 customers, 5 p.m. today
Logansport: 43 customers, 5 p.m. today
Mansfield: 160 customers, 5 p.m. today
Natchitoches: 1,019 customers, 8 p.m. today
While they work to restore service in areas hit by severe weather, SWEPCO offers these important safety tips:
• Treat all downed lines as if they are carrying electricity. Stay away, and keep others away, especially children and pets. Don’t touch anything in contact with the line,
such as trees or fences. Report downed lines immediately.
• Be extremely careful using any alternate sources for heating, cooling, cooking or lighting. If you use a portable or RV generator, do not plug the generator into your home’s main electrical panel. Generators can “back-feed” electricity into outside utility lines, creating the danger of electrocution for repair crews and the public. Instead, plug essential appliances directly into the generator.
