Perryville – Over 200 lineworkers, tree trimmers and support staff are working to restore power to Citizens Electric Corporation members.
Lineworkers from Cuivre River Electric Cooperative and Crawford Electric Cooperative, along with several other contractors, have reportedly joined Citizens Electric crews in the fight to get the lights on.
Winter Storm Blair hit Citizens Electric’s service territory, with Perry and Cape Girardeau counties receiving half an inch of ice that coated trees and powerlines. Outages began Sunday morning, and by the afternoon, 12,500 members were without power across the service territory. Crews were reported to have made progress and restored power to a few thousand members before additional outages occurred as conditions worsened overnight.
At 3 p.m. Tuesday, Citizens Electric reported more than 5,000 members were without power. Outage updates can be found on the Citizens Electric website: cecmo.com/winter-storm-blair-outage-updates. The utility said estimating when power will be restored is very difficult. Isolated areas could see extended outage timelines.
Citizens Electric expressed its appreciation for the patience of its members as the utility has experienced high call volumes. Members are being encouraged to keep safety in mind, especially during extremely cold weather and winter outages.
The company added that the public should assume all lines are energized and dangerous, even those that are hanging low or lying directly on the ground. The public is being warned to never approach a downed power line or to drive across or move lines because they can cause serious injury or death. Such situations should be reported immediately.
Citizens Electric noted that members with damage to their service entrance equipment will need to have repairs made by an electrician before power is restored to the location. Contact Citizens Electric to isolate the problem so an electrician can make repairs.
To report a power outage, call 1-877-876-3511. Citizens Electric is pledging that it will work as quickly and safely as conditions allow to restore power to its members.
About Citizens Electric Corporation
Citizens Electric Corporation, established in 1947, is a not-for-profit corporation operating as an electric cooperative located in Perryville. Citizens Electric services over 27,000 members in Perry County, Ste. Genevieve County and portions of Cape Girardeau, Bollinger, Jefferson, and St. Francois County. For more information, visit www.cecmo.com or follow Citizens Electric on Facebook and LinkedIn.