Kentucky Power Storm Update
Monday, April 13 at 6:00 pm
Summary
Late Sunday night, April 12, a severe line of wind and rain ripped through eastern Kentucky causing widespread power outages and damage to electrical facilities. Reports of wind gusts from 60-80 MPH have been reported throughout the Kentucky Power territory. At the peak, more than 59,000 customers were without power.
The damage is extensive in many areas. As crews conduct assessments, they are finding dozens of broken poles and numerous spans of wire down. As weather allows, helicopters are assessing damage on some of the large transmission lines in the area. Some roads and areas are inaccessible due to downed trees and rock slides. Kentucky Power is working closely with local emergency management teams to address accessibility issues.
For everyone’s health and safety with the ongoing Covid-19 crisis, please do not approach power company personnel in the field. It is important to maintain physical distancing, remaining at least six feet away. Stopping crews who are working in your area also slows down the process.
Storm Response Efforts
Nearly 500 personnel are already working to address outages. Approximately 300 additional damage assessors and line personnel from our sister company, Indiana & Michigan Power, will join our restoration teams tomorrow.
Because the damage is so widespread and assessment is still underway, estimated times for restoration for the majority of locations will not be available until later tomorrow. Restoration will be a multi-day effort for Hazard, Pikeville, South Williamson and Whitesburg and surrounding areas. Restoration efforts in the Ashland and Paintsville areas will wrap up by late tonight.
Outages
As of 5:30 p.m., more than 10,000 customers have been restored since late last night. Restoration is prioritized by number of customers on a circuit and essential services. One of the focus areas for today was ensuring that hospitals, nursing homes, grocery stores, gas stations and other essential businesses were restored. While the progress is significant for the first day, more than 48,880 remain without power.
The following counties are experiencing the majority of the outages, but nearly every county is affected.
Breathitt 1,259
Floyd 3,276
Johnson 754
Knott 6,068
Leslie 5,756
Letcher 7,713
Martin 830
Perry 13,975
Pike 11,730
For More Information
Customers can report outages and check the latest restoration information for their account anytime at kentuckypower.com/outages or by downloading the Kentucky Power mobile app at kentuckypower.com/app. The outage map is updated every 15 minutes. Restoration information is added when known. Click on “View Outage Map” to access the map on a computer, cell phone, or tablet. Customers can report outages online, on their mobile device or to our Customer Operations Center at 1-800-572-1113.
Customers also can get specific information about outages via text message and/or email by subscribing to Kentucky Power outage alerts. To sign up, please visit www.kentuckypower.com/alerts. Information also is posted on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/KentuckyPowerand on Twitter at twitter.com/KentuckyPower or @KentuckyPower.
Safety Message
High winds can cause fallen trees and downed power lines. Kentucky Power warns customers to be aware of broken limbs and branches and to stay away from all downed lines. Never touch downed power lines no matter how harmless they look. 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. Also, never 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 Kentucky Power at 1-800-572-1113 to report hazards.
Customer Information
Customers are reminded that during storm restoration situations, Kentucky Power tree crews clear rights of way of trees and move on to the next location. Kentucky Power does not return to remove the cut trees. Property owners are responsible for removal. Kentucky Power asks for your patience and understanding during the restoration process
Next Update: April 14, 10 a.m.
