Efforts to restore electricity continue in De Soto Parish, where nearly 4,000 customers remain without power after severe weather, including three EF1 tornadoes confirmed by the National Weather Service.
SWEPCO has successfully restored power to around 19,000 ArkLaTex customers affected by the recent storms as of Saturday noon.
Ongoing Restoration Efforts
Crews are dealing with significant challenges due to damaged infrastructure in heavily wooded or flooded areas in Texas and Louisiana. To tackle these issues, specialized equipment is being utilized. In Texas, crews are focusing on Center, using backyard machines for repairs.
Meanwhile, in Louisiana, the focus is on the Mansfield area, with plans to shift to Natchitoches and Hornbeck once those repairs are complete. In what has been the third wettest May on record, with over 11 inches of rain, restoration efforts are steadily progressing.
Potential for Further Weather-Related Challenges
The whole of SWEPCO’s three-state service region remains vulnerable to more storms
The whole of SWEPCO’s three-state service region remains vulnerable to more storms, enhancing the risk for fresh outages.
Saturated ground conditions mean that even minor winds could cause trees to fall and disrupt power lines. Customers are encouraged to stay informed about weather conditions and are thanked for their patience as rebuilding continues after the substantial storm damage.
Estimated Time of Restoration
SWEPCO has projected times for the completion of power restoration in the storm-hit areas, while noting that some customers might see their service return earlier than expected. Current and prospective customers are encouraged to sign up for email or text alerts on the SWEPCO website to receive personalized updates about restoration in their specific locations.
Hundreds of utility professionals continue to work safely and quickly to restore service to the nearly 4,000 customers who remain without power following multiple rounds of severe weather over the past week, which included three EF1 tornadoes in De Soto Parish, confirmed by the National Weather Service.
As of noon Saturday, SWEPCO has restored power to approximately 19,000 ArkLaTex customers impacted by the most recent round of severe weather.
Ongoing restoration efforts
Much of the damaged infrastructure in Texas and Louisiana is in heavily wooded or flooded areas, which requires crews to use specialized equipment to make repairs. Crews were deployed to Center, Texas, this morning with backyard machines to make the needed repairs to restore service to the area.
In Louisiana, crews are completing repairs in the Mansfield area, and from there, they will be redeployed to the Natchitoches and Hornbeck areas to support ongoing restoration efforts. Learn more about the restoration process. This has been the third wettest May on record, with more than 11 inches of rain.
SWEPCO’s entire three-state service territory
Chances remain for more storms to pop up across SWEPCO’s entire three-state service territory
With significant rainfall throughout the month, the ground is extremely saturated, which can make even a slight wind cause trees to fall from outside the right-of-ways and potentially create new outages.
Chances remain for more storms to pop up across SWEPCO’s entire three-state service territory. Customers are advised to remain weather aware. They appreciate everyone’s patience as we work to rebuild following this significant storm.
Estimated time of restoration
SWEPCO has provided estimated restoration times for areas impacted by the storm. However, service could be restored sooner.
Customers who signed up for email or text alerts could receive direct updates on the estimated restoration time at their home or business as crews continue working to restore power. To sign up to receive the personalized restoration update, visit the SWEPCO website.
