Largest scale power outage in eight years leaves 15,500 without electricity

Springfield and the surrounding area saw a severe storm Sunday night that at its peak left 15,500 people without power. The outages were declared a large-scale emergency which allowed City Utilities to call onto more crews to help assess damages and restore power.

Joel Alexander, media relations manager for City Utilities, said this is the first event of this magnitude in 8-10 years. As of 11:30 a.m. Monday morning, 8,000 were still without electricity. He said their goal is to have power restored within 48 hours.

The storm began around 11:30 p.m. Sunday, reaching up to 70 miles per hour winds, uprooting trees, causing tree limbs to fall onto power lines and sometimes even breaking poles and cross arms. Alexander said the outages began as quickly as the storm rolled in.

"This was an unexpected storm," he said. "It certainly caught everyone by surprise."

While progress was made during the night hours in locating the damage, some parts of the work had to wait.

"Damage and restructure and limbs and trees are really, really difficult and hazardous in the dark," he said. "Once the daylight came about, we were able to really start making good strides on that."

Who is affected?

South of Republic Road saw the most impact from the storm in the Southwest and Southeast corridor. However, the high winds left many beyond Springfield in the surrounding areas without power. Alexander said City Utilities had seen damage down to the Greene County and Christian County border.

"We have communities all around us that are dealing with outages from the southwest of the state down to Branson," he said.

He said crews work on places that can get the most people power back at one time first. Priority customers, like hospitals, will also be on top of the list in restoring power.

As crews, both CU and contracted ones, currently work on assessing damages and restoring power, more linemen and tree trimming crews are on the way. Alexander said some of these crews are coming from Colorado, Arkansas and Iowa to be able to work on getting everything back as soon as possible, especially with high temperatures during the day. They have also requested mutual aid assistance from their partner utilities through the Missouri Public Utility Alliance to help with the restoration efforts.

Monday morning, he said there were nine tree crews, combined 24 line and substation crews and other electrical staff at work.

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Some damages cannot be helped by City Utilities. Alexander said if the problems lie where electricity enters the home, that is a cause to call in a licensed electrician. This can usually be seen when there is damage to the weatherhead in older homes and neighborhoods that predated undergrounding.

What should I do if I don't have power?

Alexander said those who have not yet reported the outage, should do so to confirm that crews are aware of the issue. It is possible that only one house experiences an outage while neighbors still have theirs because of the way the feeder system is set up, he said.

To report an outage, call 1-888-863-9001 or visit cityutilities.net

If there are power lines down or if trees have damaged lines, Alexander said this should also be reported to City Utilities and 911 should also be alerted.

"Don't take a chance," he said. "If you see a down line, display a safe distance away from that."

Katie Towns, director of health for the Springfield-Greene County Health Department, said refrigerated food can be hazardous after six hours without electricity and cautioned people to throw this food away or consume it before this. She said if the freezer remains shut, the food should last a day without spoiling.

With the heat index reaching 100°F today and a possible 103°F tomorrow, Towns said heat-related illnesses, particularly heat strokes, are a concern amid the outages. Heat stroke occurs when the body’s temperature climbs to or above 104°F, and it can be deadly. Call 9-1-1 immediately if a person has symptoms including a high body temperature, red, hot or dry skin, rapid pulse, throbbing headache, dizziness, nausea, confusion or unconsciousness.

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She urged those who have not been impacted by the outages and have access to air conditioning to check in on and offer shelter to neighbors, friends and family who may be struggling, particularly children, older adults and those with chronic illnesses. Pets should also be kept in cooler areas and given plenty of water.

The Health Department has numerous cooling centers open to provide refuge for those who may be experiencing an extended outage. With questions about food safety or heat-related illness the Health Department can be reached at (417) 874-1211.

What's to come?

Kelsey Angle, meteorologist in charge of the National Weather Service in Springfield, said there is a possibility of more severe thunderstorms Monday night.

He said winds will also be stronger on Tuesday, cautioning that tree limbs that may have broken but not yet fallen may become a hazard.

"Please be mindful as you're out and about and looking up and above, some of those tree limbs could also fall down," Angle said.

Alexander said all hands are on deck to help bring everyone back on the grid as quickly and safely as possible.

"Be patient with us," he said. "We're all in this together."

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Southwest Missouri storms leave thousands without electricity