Duke Energy restored power to more than 250,000 customers who were affected by the severe and damaging storms that ripped through Indiana. Winds as high as 90 miles an hour in some areas. Multiple waves of storms brought challenging and lengthy repairs.
About 94,200 remained out of service as of about 7 a.m. on June 30, and as of 3:30 p.m. that afternoon, crews restored power for nearly 130,000 customers. Then on July 1, 45,000 customers remained without power.
The storm caused outages in nearly all of the 28 districts Duke Energy serves in Indiana, particularly in the Western and South-Central parts of the state. The utility mobilized 1,900 to respond to severe structural damage on the electrical grid. Crews statewide have worked to address more than 110 miles of downed power lines, replace 160 broken poles and clear more than 370 fallen trees.
“We greatly appreciate our customers’ ongoing patience during this multi-day power restoration process,” said Stan Pinegar, president of Duke Energy Indiana. “Our crews are entering the final phase of restoration, which includes challenging and lengthy repairs to replace broken utility poles and restoring power lines in hard-hit areas. We appreciate the partnership of Indiana University and Indiana State University to help us stand up mustering locations and offer housing for crews working to get the lights back on.”
The company is bringing in personnel from Duke Energy operations in Ohio and Kentucky as well as the Carolinas. Contractors who regularly assist the company in storms are also responding. Duke Energy is moving crews to respond to the hardest hit areas in and around the Western and South-Central parts of the state, including Clay, Monroe, Putnam, Vermillion and Vigo counties.
“We are seeing large numbers of broken poles, trees in power lines and spans of wire down,” Pinegar said. “We also had damage on our electric transmission system, which includes power lines and structures that are our major carriers of power.”
During power restoration, the company’s priority is to repair large power lines and other infrastructure that will return power to the greatest number of customers as safely, quickly and efficiently as possible. Crews then can work on repairs affecting individual neighborhoods and homes.
Anthony Brown, Duke Energy’s Indiana storm director, says every storm response is unique.
"Our crews in the field are working quickly and carefully, supported by many other teammates, to communicate with our customers and restore their power," he says.
Click here for information on how Duke Energy restores power.
