Several thousand left without power after snow Tuesday

Several thousand customers were without power in Bollinger and Perry counties in Southeast Missouri on Wednesday, Jan. 25, after snow blanketed the region Tuesday night, Jan. 24.

Citizens Electric Corp. reported Wednesday that 1,700 residents in Perry County had lost power.

A release said trees and limbs had fallen onto power lines, breaking poles and downing wires.

Officials said most customers would have their power restored by Thursday evening, Jan. 26, though customers in remote areas might not have their power restored until Friday, Jan. 27.

As of Wednesday afternoon, power had been restored to about 1,000 customers.

Outside contractors and two crews from Gascosage Electric Cooperative are assisting Citizens Electric workers.

Officials noted customers should not attempt to remove or trim foliage within 10 feet of a power line and should steer clear of fallen lines.

To report an outage or to speak with a member services representative, customers may call (877) 876-3511 and follow the prompts.

In Bollinger County, Black River Electric Cooperative reported 2,642 customers without power as of 2 p.m. Wednesday.

Crews from Boone Electric Cooperative and Cuivre River Electric Cooperative were assisting in restoring power.

A notice on the organization's website said workers were repairing lines but melting snow was hampering efforts.