MEMPHIS
40°
Friday
Clear Sky
MLGW staffs up for weekend restoration work
July 21, 2023
Early morning and afternoon storms bring additional outages
(July 21, 2023, 5 p.m.) – Severe weather continues to cause outages. Morning and afternoon storms that rolled through brought winds in excess of 75 mph and caused another 60,000 customers to lose power, bringing the peak to 74,000. As of now, there are 71,800 customers without power.
Crews will attack outages that get the most customers back on as quickly as possible. We will do our best to also focus some crews on restoring customers who have been off since Tuesday evening.
MLGW has a full complement of MLGW and contract crews working today through the weekend. There are 98 repair crews, 89 tree crews, 23 troubleshooters and 34 damage assessment teams identifying damage and repairing the system. They are supported by hundreds of logistics, administrative, safety and system operations personnel.
Full restoration for those affected by Tuesday’s and Friday’s storms will extend past the original Sunday estimate.
Customers should continue to call to report their outage and not assume we are aware of their outage. Often, an outage at the circuit or distribution line level will mask another outage at the fuse, transformer or service drop level. When the circuit is successfully repaired, the system may not automatically detect an outage downstream.
Further, customers may have a localized damage, like equipment down in their backyard or damage to their weatherheads. The weatherhead is usually located above the roofline or attached to the gable or side of the house where the customer's wiring connects to MLGW's electric lines. The weatherhead is the homeowner's property and therefore is not maintained by MLGW. If it is damaged, a customer must have it repaired by a licensed electrician and inspected by Code Enforcement before MLGW can restore power.
Important Notices/Reminders:
(July 21, 2023, 5 p.m.) – Severe weather continues to cause outages. Morning and afternoon storms that rolled through brought winds in excess of 75 mph and caused another 60,000 customers to lose power, bringing the peak to 74,000. As of now, there are 71,800 customers without power.
Crews will attack outages that get the most customers back on as quickly as possible. We will do our best to also focus some crews on restoring customers who have been off since Tuesday evening.
MLGW has a full complement of MLGW and contract crews working today through the weekend. There are 98 repair crews, 89 tree crews, 23 troubleshooters and 34 damage assessment teams identifying damage and repairing the system. They are supported by hundreds of logistics, administrative, safety and system operations personnel.
Full restoration for those affected by Tuesday’s and Friday’s storms will extend past the original Sunday estimate.
Customers should continue to call to report their outage and not assume we are aware of their outage. Often, an outage at the circuit or distribution line level will mask another outage at the fuse, transformer or service drop level. When the circuit is successfully repaired, the system may not automatically detect an outage downstream.
Further, customers may have a localized damage, like equipment down in their backyard or damage to their weatherheads. The weatherhead is usually located above the roofline or attached to the gable or side of the house where the customer's wiring connects to MLGW's electric lines. The weatherhead is the homeowner's property and therefore is not maintained by MLGW. If it is damaged, a customer must have it repaired by a licensed electrician and inspected by Code Enforcement before MLGW can restore power.
Important Notices/Reminders:
• Call 211 for emergency shelter and other resources.
• Customers who currently receive SNAP can apply for replacement benefits at https://www.tn.gov/humanservices/for-families/tdhs-disaster-emergency-assistance.html.
• An MLGW emergency response dashboard is online at http://www.mlgw.com/stormresponse.
• Please always call 528-4465 to report emergencies like downed powerlines and gas leaks. MLGW asks customers to stay away from downed powerlines. DO NOT TOUCH or cut limbs across powerlines. They could be energized (hot).
• MLGW customers can report power outages and check the status of their outage through My Account or by calling the automated outage number: 544-6500. Customers can also check the online outage map: mlgw.com/outagecenter.
Memphis Light, Gas and Water is the largest three-service public power utility in the nation, serving the residents of Memphis and Shelby County, Tennessee since 1939. MLGW consistently provides customers with rates that are amongst the lowest in the nation and stewards a water supply from artesian wells that is minimally treated. Actively engaged in promoting the prosperity of Memphis and Shelby County, MLGW supports the seven local chambers in its service area and makes doing business with local, minority- and women-owned business a priority. Deeply rooted in the community, its employees generously donate time and money in support of bettering the Greater Memphis area.
Memphis, TN 38103