KANSAS CITY, Mo., Jan. 13, 2019 – Additional line crews from neighboring utilities will join in power restoration for KCP&L customers. More than 1,000 utility workers worked Sunday to restore power. About 57,000 customers remained without power Sunday evening. Crews will work around the clock to continue restoring power to customers at least into Tuesday.
“Tree trimming crews and line crews made good progress today. The weight of this heavy, wet snow caused damage comparable to severe ice storms,” said Bruce Akin, vice president, distribution operations. “The last winter storm that caused this much damage was more than 15 years ago. We have a lot of repairs to complete, so we are bringing in more line crews from neighboring utilities.”
Winter Storm Gia moved slowly through the Kansas City region Saturday, blanketing the city with up to 11 inches of wet, heavy snow. The storm initially left more than 110,000 KCP&L customers without power. KCP&L crews began restoring power as the storm began Saturday morning. The snow clung to tree limbs and powerlines, weighing them down, causing significant tree and wire damage and resulting in power outages.
Monday, nearly 1,500 linemen, tree trimmers, engineers and support staff will be working to restore power. KCP&L crews have been joined by crews from Westar Energy, Kansas; Midwest Energy, Kansas; Mid-American, Iowa; Ameren, Missouri and Illinois; Springfield Utilities, Missouri; and Liberty Utilities-Empire District, Missouri, to help restore power. Utilities have a practice of sharing crews when large storms hit areas to enable them to grow their work force and respond to the urgent need. Line contractors and tree trimming contractors are assisting as well.
With the extended outages and cold temperatures, warming centers are available in some communities. A list of warming centers is available from the United Way of Greater Kansas City online or by calling 2-1-1.
Current outage locations and numbers are available on the KCP&L outage map (outagemap.kcpl.com). Outages may be reported online at KCPL.com and at 1-888-LIGHTKC (888-544-4852).
