Snapped power poles after Tuesday’s windstorm, Sept. 8, 2020.
LOGAN — Crews are trying to restore electricity to thousands of county residents and businesses that lost power after Tuesday morning’s storm. The wind knocked out power to more than 9000 people in Cache County and around 180,000 throughout the state.
Rocky Mountain Power spokesman David Eskelsen said their employees are out in force making repairs. They are working as quickly and safely as possible to restore electricity.
“It’s probable that many customers are going to be out overnight and maybe for a day or two after that,” explained Eskelsen. “It depends on the nature of the damage that we find there.”
The storm, which produced wind gusts of more than 60 mph in the valley, snapped power poles and toppled trees. It also destroyed sheds and trampolines that were carried into neighboring yards and streets.
Eskelsen said crews began by making sure substations and main lines were functioning and are moving out to the connected neighborhoods. They estimate there are over a thousand areas of damage through the state.
“In these down-slopped wind events, as we restore power to some customers, new outages happen as the winds continue. It looks like the wind is supposed to continue overnight and into tomorrow. We are certain that we will be working on this for the next day or two. An actual estimated restoration for any particular area just isn’t possible at this time.”
A majority of the reported outages were located on the east-side of Cache Valley. Outages were also reported throughout Rich County and near Deweyville, in Box Elder County
Eskelsen said their main power grid appears to be functioning properly. Most of the outages are from localized damage.
“Most of it is the neighborhood distribution lines because they are in proximity to trees, and even trees that have been properly trimmed over the year can break and cause damage to the lines themselves. It is very time consuming to get around and restore everybody’s power.”
Crews advise everyone to always treat any down power line as charged and do not touch it. In most cases, a protective fuse or circuit breaker will trip when a line goes down, de-energizing the line, but that doesn’t always occur.
Eskelsen also advised homeowners to make sure their meter boxes are not damaged or have them repaired if they are. That will allow crews to restore electricity quicker.
“In overhead service, the wire that comes from the pole to the house is the company’s responsibility. The mast that it connects to and the meter base on the side of the house is customer property. If the mast or meter are damaged or pulled away from the house, it needs to be repaired by a licensed electrician. That is something that needs to be arranged for by the homeowner if that damage is apparent.”
Logan City Light and Power crews also had several outages within the city. Those outages were minor and involved homes that were damaged and needed repair before power will be restored.
will@cvradio.com