Saturday updates: Crews continue to work to restore power after high-powered wind storm

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Thunderstorms that brought high-speed winds through the region Friday left a mark in Louisville and around the Bluegrass State – and left plenty of work to be done Saturday.

About 73,000 people in Louisville alone were without power by 7:15 p.m. Saturday, according to LG&E's online outage map, with tens of thousands without power in surrounding counties. Those city residents were among the more than 298,000 people around Kentucky who did not have electricity at that time, according to poweroutage.us, an online aggregator.

Power restoration will be a "multi-day" process, LG&E spokesperson Liz Pratt said Saturday morning. The storm was the third-most significant power outage event in the past 20 years, she said at about 11 a.m. The company had a total of 190,000 customers in Louisville and the surrounding region without power at that time and has dealt with 80,000 calls since the start of the storm.

Friday's storm brought heavy rain through the commonwealth followed by devastating high-speed winds, which peaked locally at 79 mph, according to the National Weather Service in Louisville. At least five people across the state had been killed due to the severe weather, though Louisville Metro Emergency Services Director Jody Meiman said Saturday no deaths had been reported in Louisville.

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LG&E's focus on restoring power will start with critical services including hospitals, fire departments, police departments and nursing homes, Pratt said. She said crews will then work on temporary repairs "and then come back to make it longer," and will also have crews repairing lines that power homes and businesses directly.

Speaking at a Saturday morning press conference, Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg said 75 roads around town are currently blocked by downed trees, but all routes should be open by the end of the day. Flood barricades that had been set up earlier Friday as rain rolled through have been removed, he said, and Greenberg urged anyone dealing with damage to contact insurance carriers in the meantime. The mayor added he should have more information about potential federal help in coming days.

At a separate Saturday press conference, Gov. Andy Beshear said "very significant widespread damage" had been reported throughout the state, with downed trees and power lines behind the biggest damage. Large numbers of displaced people have not been reported, he said, including among those living in travel trailers due to other natural disasters over the course of the past year.

MetroSafe received thousands of calls Friday during the storm, officials said Saturday. The city will open its 311 hotline for non-emergency calls on Saturday, including traffic issues. Schools, which were closed Friday, are expected to be open Monday.

Louisville Metro Emergency Management Operations Coordinator Jason Brandt said no roads are currently flooded and the city is working with LG&E to restore power in traffic lights that are down. Debris like downed trees can be taken to 636 Meriwether Ave., he said.

Beshear called a state of emergency earlier Friday as a precaution, and Greenberg called a local state of emergency that evening, calling on residents to exercise caution if traveling. Pratt urged Louisville residents to stay away from downed power lines as the company works to restore electricity in the city and around the region.

The National Weather Service in Louisville said an EF-1 tornado with winds of 100 miles per hour had been reported between Lexington and Hanover, Indiana. Two other tornadoes touched down in McCracken County and in Christian County, Beshear said on Friday.

Here's a quick look at what's happening in Louisville and around Kentucky on Saturday, as the region picks up the pieces.

Power outages

Officials with LG&E and KU will be busy Saturday working to restore power. Here's a look at current local outages as of 7:15 p.m.:

• Jefferson County - 73,286

• Bullitt County - 1,828

• Oldham County - 8,128

• Meade County - 229

• Hardin County - 2,379

• Spencer County - 516

• Shelby County - 853

LG&E provides status updates during outages by texting STATUS to 4LGEKU (454358).

Beshear said at just after 4 p.m. Saturday that power outages around the state have dropped from 536,569 to 341,969. He also said there are 15 water systems under limited operation and that 1,874 services are under boil water advisories. Kelley Dearing Smith with the Louisville Water Company said there are currently no boil water advisories in place for Jefferson County.

Jody Meiman, director of Louisville Metro Emergency Services, said people without electricity can charge their cellphones at any Metro government building, library or community center during business hours.

Louisville Free Public Library said in its Twitter account that the Highlands-Shelby Park branch and Fairdale branch will be closed until further notice. Four libraries are open but have no power: Southwest, South Central, Jeffersontown and Shawnee.

Local traffic

While Friday's storm flipped trucks across the state and at one point caused two major interstate closures in Louisville, TRIMARC'S updating traffic map reported roads around the city were generally clear Saturday morning.

A total of 17 flights had been canceled at Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport, according to flight tracking software FlightAware.

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Deaths due to the storm

Five deaths were reported across the state, Beshear said Saturday morning. The deaths included a 23-year-old man in Edmonson County, a 63-year-old man in Logan County, an 84-year-old man in Bath County, a 68-year-old man in Simpson County and a 41-year-old woman in Fayette County.

Officials in Louisville said earlier Saturday that no one in Jefferson County had been killed due to the storm.

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High school basketball games moved

High school basketball postseason games that had been set to take place Saturday at Valley High School will now be played at Fern Creek High School, according to JCPS, due to a power outage.

Sixth Region boys games will take place at noon (Jeffersontown vs. Butler) and 1:30 p.m. (DeSales vs. Evangel Christian), while Seventh Region girls games will be held at 5 p.m. (Mercy vs. Bullitt East) and 7 p.m. (Sacred Heart vs. Central).

Saturday's forecast

Saturday's forecast should be a silver lining after Friday of dark clouds.

Sunny skies are expected in Louisville throughout the day, according to the National Weather Service's local office, with highs in the upper 50s. Rain is not in the forecast.

Saturday night should be clear as well, with lows in the mid 30s, before giving way to clear conditions and temperatures in the 60s on Sunday.

What happened Friday

Friday was ugly in Louisville and around the commonwealth.

Several inches of rain fell in the city and in other parts of Kentucky as a fierce weather system moved west through the state. High-speed winds in the afternoon knocked down trees, power lines, light poles, trucks and other objects all over the region, causing traffic delays and other issues.

Jefferson County Public Schools and several other local groups and businesses were closed in anticipation of the weather, with high school basketball postseason action postponed until later in the weekend.

Reach The Courier Journal's breaking news team at lounews@courier-journal.com.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Louisville power outages: Weather updates Saturday after wind storm