Kentucky Power Storm Update: Saturday, July 30, 10 a.m.
Weather
Devastating flooding earlier in the week caused catastrophic damage to numerous communities in southeast Kentucky. No rain is expected on Saturday, but there is a good chance for showers and thunderstorms later in the weekend.
Summary
Kentucky Power’s focus is to restore power to more than 23,000 customers who lost power at the height of the storm.
- More than 7,500 customers have been restored, with 15,789 customers remaining. The vast majority of these customers live in Breathitt, Leslie, Knott, Letcher, Perry and Pike counties. Many areas remain inaccessible by our crews, hampering restoration efforts.
- As crews are able to get in the severely damaged areas, they are reporting that entire sections of circuits are destroyed and will have to be redesigned and rebuilt. Roads and terrain are so damaged to the extent that crews cannot rebuild in the same areas.
- Our damaged substations have been temporarily restored through switching and load transfers from other sources. In some cases, crews had to disassemble equipment, manually clean out mud and debris, make repairs, inspect and test to ensure proper operation. The Topmost substation received up to five feet of water.
- More than 60 broken poles, 17 damaged transformers, 50 broken cross arms and over 225 spans of downed wire have been recorded as of last night. Assessment in some areas is still impossible due to areas that are inaccessible from high water or washed out roads.
- Good weather today will allow for a helicopter to assess damage in some areas that can’t be reached by vehicle. Drones are also being used to assess damage.
Storm Response Efforts
More than 700 Kentucky Power personnel, business partners and external resources will be working today to restore as much power as possible. Crews from AEP sister companies and other business partners from Ohio, Indiana and Michigan have joined the efforts. Additional assistance is arriving today.
There are still multiples areas that remain inaccessible due to blocked or damaged roads and floodwaters, particularly in Breathitt County.
Estimated Restoration Times
Keep in mind these are estimated projection for those who are able to receive power, meaning there is no damage to your home or meter loop.
- 95% of Leslie County customers should be restored by tonight.
- Customers in Floyd and Pike Counties should be 95% restored by Sunday night. Crews are anticipating to have most areas in the South Williamson area wrapped up by tonight. Keep in mind these are estimated projections, so many more will be restored before these timeframes.
- It is estimated that power restoration will continue well into next week for customers in the remaining counties of Breathitt, Knott, Letcher, and Perry.
PLEASE NOTE: Because of the extent of damage to people’s homes, we are anticipating a lot of single customer outage cases as restoration progresses. Restoration estimates are for customers whose property is in condition to receive power. If the electric service entrance (meter loop) to your home or business has been damaged or pulled away from the structure, you will need to have it repaired in accordance with the National Electric Code before Kentucky Power can re-connect service.
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. Customers can report outages online, on their mobile device or to our Customer Operations Center at 1-800-572-1113.
Safety Messages:
Kentucky Power warns customers 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.
Next update: Saturday, July 30 at 6:30 p.m.
