CenterPoint Energy provides update on restoration efforts 

CenterPoint Energy provides an update on restoration efforts 

Evansville, Ind. – April 5, 2024 – Another line of strong storms containing damaging wind and lightning, caused further damage to CenterPoint Energy’s southwestern Indiana territory this afternoon, resulting in additional outages. Assessments of additional damage to CenterPoint Energy’s electric system are ongoing.

As of 9 p.m., there are approximately 12,000 electric customers without power. Due to extensive tree and power infrastructure damage sustained in the multiple weather events today, the outage count is likely to continue to fluctuate.

More than 100 CenterPoint Energy employees and contract resources, including damage assessment and repair teams, have been working throughout the day to make repairs to the system and have restored power to approximately 14,000 impacted customers since this morning’s initial line of storms. A limited number of crews will continue working through the night and will be joined by additional mutual assistance support early tomorrow morning. Due to the extent of the damage, it is expected that approximately 11,500 customer outages will remain without power overnight. The outages resulting from more extensive damage may not be restored until Thursday.

“Our crews are working around the clock to restore power as safely and quickly as possible to our affected customers,” said Richard Leger, Senior Vice President, Indiana Electric at CenterPoint Energy. “We appreciate our customers’ continued patience as we work through widespread issues, including more than 100 downed poles, downed wires, trees and damaged equipment.”

CenterPoint Energy reminds customers to remain safe and:

• Stay at least 35 feet away from downed power lines and report them to CenterPoint Energy at 800-227-1376. Be especially mindful of downed lines that could be hidden and treat all downed lines as if they are energized.
• Flood waters can be hazardous. Always use extreme care when stepping into flooded areas.
• Be cautious around work crews and give them plenty of room to safely assess damages and make repairs.
• If you have experienced damage to your Weatherhead – the point of entry from the service drop to the home – a licensed electrician will need to make necessary repairs before power can be safely restored.
• If your power is out, don’t open freezers and refrigerators any more than necessary. Opening these appliances will allow food to thaw more quickly.
• Only use a portable generator in a well-ventilated area and never run it inside or in a garage to avoid carbon monoxide fumes, which can be deadly.
• Never connect a portable electric generator directly to your building’s electrical system during a power outage; electricity could back feed into the power lines, potentially endangering CenterPoint Energy workers.
• If you smell natural gas, get to a safe area and call both 911 and CenterPoint Energy at 800-227-1376.

For the latest information on power outages:

• Report outages by texting the word “OUT” to 83212.
• Sign up for Power Alert Service® for information on individual outages.

• Follow @CenterPoint on X (formerly known as Twitter) and visit our outage map for general outage locations; and
• Visit CenterPoint Energy’s Electric Outage Center for electric safety tips and other resources.