SWEPCO crews continue responding to Friday’s severe storms that caused major damage to SWEPCO’s transmission system, the backbone of SWEPCO’s energy delivery network.
Additional severe storms continue to sweep through SWEPCO service territory with more strong storms, lightning, wind damage and hail, possible on Father’s Day. In fact, overnight and early morning storms added an additional 21,000 customers, as of 9:30 a.m., Sunday without power.
While lightning and high winds will temporarily slow our response our work will not stop.
Our crews, together with more than 2,800 utility professionals from AEP Texas, Appalachian Power, Indiana & Michigan Power, and Kentucky Power as well as other support from Missouri and Oklahoma will continue undaunted as we work as safely and as quickly as possible to rebuild our power delivery system and restore everyone’s service.
Continue to stay weather aware! Potential remains for additional severe storms with 60-70 mph wind gusts this morning through early afternoon in several SWEPCO communities and could disrupt service to more customers.
Outage update: At peak, close to a quarter of a million SWEPCO customers lost power after the hurricane-force winds caused significant damage to the power delivery system across SWEPCO’s service area. As of 9:30 a.m. Sunday, approximately 58,997 customers have had power restored; an estimated 191,003 SWEPCO customers remain without power. Friday’s storms included a National Weather Service confirmed EF-1 half-mile wide tornado that touched down in Panola County, Texas and crossed into Caddo Parish, Louisiana.
Work continues, weather permitting, to rebuild SWEPCO’s energy delivery system with continued focus on repairs to SWEPCO’s transmission system.
Approximately 60 Transmission and Distribution stations were impacted, and 50 transmission lines were forced out of service due to tree and structure damage caused by the extreme weather. SWEPCO’s utility poles and distribution wires serving individual homes and businesses also experienced extensive damage.
Damage to transmission lines can result in significant outages.
SWEPCO is grateful for all the crew members who have left their families with many away from their families on Father’s Day and beyond to help in this historic restoration effort.
Estimated Restoration Times: Teams will provide additional detail including updates to restoration areas and times as crews continue working to restore power.
- Natchitoches District in Louisiana – 10 p.m., Tuesday, June 20
- Texarkana District in Texas – 10 p.m., Wednesday, June 21
- Longview District in Texas – 10 p.m., Friday, June 23
- Shreveport District in Louisiana – 10 p.m., Saturday, June 24
As we get more specific information for your area, we will update this information.
Safety Reminders:
- For your safety and for the safety of our crews, please refrain from approaching them while they are working.
- Contact our customer service personnel with any questions about your service. You can report downed lines and other hazards to SWEPCO at 888-218-3919 or online at https://www.swepco.com/outages/report/
- Downed power lines - Never touch a downed line, or go near it, no matter how harmless it looks. The line could be energized. Stay away and keep children and pets at least ten feet away from downed lines. Treat all downed power lines as if they are energized and dangerous. Call SWEPCO or 911 immediately.
- Portable generator safety – If you use a portable or RV generator, do not plug the generator into your circuit box. Portable generators can "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.