Insights > Entergy’s Louisiana Utilities Winter Storms Update – 2/17/21 @ 3:30 p.m.

Entergy’s Louisiana Utilities Winter Storms Update – 2/17/21 @ 3:30 p.m.
By: Louisiana Editorial Team

02/18/2021

Entergy’s Louisiana storm team, now 3,600 strong, is continuing to assess damages to the electric system and restore power where it is safe to do so. Multiple winter storms brought damaging freezing rain and ice to the state.

As of 11 a.m., approximately 59,000 customers in Louisiana were without power. The number of power outages could fluctuate throughout the day as additional winter weather is forecast to move through north Louisiana and crews continue to make progress in south Louisiana.

While crews have restored power to most customers in the Greater Baton Rouge and Northshore areas, new outages are being reported. Trees and limbs may give way and damage electric equipment days after the storm passed.

Crews expect to have nearly all south Louisiana customers who lost power Monday or Tuesday and can safely accept electric service restored by late tonight. South Louisiana customers who lost power Wednesday may not be restored until tomorrow. We are making every effort to prioritize restoring power to customers who have been without service the longest.

As scouts continue providing information about damages in central and north Louisiana, local networks in those regions will continue refining their restoration plan and developing estimated times of restoration to provide to customers.

Additional crews arrived in north Louisiana yesterday to help with restoration efforts throughout the day where it is safe to work. But much like in south Louisiana over the past couple days, crews in central and north Louisiana are facing challenges like hazardous driving conditions and impassable roadways due to ice accumulation.

Preliminary reports from the field in central and north Louisiana indicate ice accumulation is weighing down trees, limbs and power lines, which results in outages. In the Baton Rouge area, crews are working in backyards. In many cases, this requires specialized equipment to transport materials and equipment.

Climbing poles manually to repair or installing new equipment can delay restoration. Due to the cold temperatures in northern Tangipahoa Parish, crews must bring smaller amounts of customers on at a time to avoid damaging the electric system through instantaneous demand.

View Outage Map Delays

We continue to experience a delay in reflecting restoration status on the View Outage map. This is causing temporary discrepancies in information. We are working to correct the issues and apologize for the inconvenience.

If power is restored in your area or an outage at your location is not displayed on the map, please contact us to report your outage. To report an outage, call 1-800-9OUTAGE, or, if registered, text OUT to 36778.

Latest Estimated Times of Restoration

EAST BATON ROUGE PARISH

Outages as of 7 a.m.:  10,103
Damage assessments complete: 95%
Estimated restoration: Crews are working the following areas of Baton Rouge today:

Baton Rouge South areas we expect the vast majority to be restored Thursday, Feb. 18, by 5 p.m.:

  • Nesser
  • Inniswold
  • Wildwood/Mayfair
  • Magnolia Woods
  • Westminister
  • Iberville Terrace

Baton Rouge South areas we expect the vast majority to be restored Thursday, February 18 by 11:30 p.m.:

  • Highland Park & Kenilworth
  • LSU area

Baton Rouge East areas we expect the vast majority to be restored Thursday, February 18 by 5 p.m.:

  • Villa Del Rey
  • Stevendale/South River Oaks area

Baton Rouge East areas we expect the vast majority to be restored Thursday, Feb. 18, by 11:30 p.m.:

  • Isolated cases throughout East Baton Rouge

LIVINGSTON PARISH

Outages as of 7 a.m.:  1,025
Damage assessments complete: 95%
Estimated restoration: The vast majority of customers who can accept power have been restored with some customer outages extending into Thursday, Feb. 18. 

We expect the vast majority to be restored Thursday, Feb. 18 by 5 p.m.:

  • South Denham Springs (South of I-12)
  • Town of Livingston

We expect the vast majority to be restored Thursday, Feb. 18 by 11:30 p.m.:

  • North Denham Springs (North of Hwy 190)
  • Central Denham Springs (between I-12 and Hwy.190)
  • North Walker

ST. HELENA PARISH

Outages as of 7 a.m.:  26
Damage assessments complete: 95%
Estimated restoration: The vast majority of customers who can accept power have been restored with some customer outages extending into Thursday, Feb. 18 by 9 p.m.

Area Notes: Crews continue to work through vegetation issues while managing the cold load restoration process in the area of Amite north to Kentwood and Louisiana/Mississippi state line. Damages have been crossarms and wire down with some broken poles.  Icing on trees were more severe near the LA/MS state line.

TANGIPAHOA PARISH

Outages as of 7 a.m.:  2,881
Damage assessments complete: 95%
Estimated restoration: The vast majority of customers who can accept power have been restored with some customer outages in Tangipahoa, Fluker, Arcola, Kentwood, Amite, Montpelier, Holten and Wilmer extending into Thursday, Feb. 18 by 9 p.m.

Safety is our number one priority. If you lose power:

  • Stay away from downed power lines and assume they are energized. Report them to 1-800-9OUTAGE.
  • Report your power outage online to Entergy Louisiana or call 1-800-9OUTAGE. There is no need to speak with a customer service representative to report an outage if completed online.
  • If you have a portable generator, use it safely. DO NOT run it in an enclosed space. If connecting to the whole house, do so only if the connection has been installed by a licensed electrician to prevent back feed on to the distribution system.
  • Do not open your refrigerator or freezer door. Food will stay cold much longer this way. If outside temperature is below freezing, consider placing food in an ice chest outside.
  • Please stay clear of linemen as they work to safely restore power
  • Customers without power can help in the restoration process by turning off major appliances but leaving on a lamp or other light to indicate when power is restored. Then, gradually turn other appliances to spread out the increase in power usage over a longer time.

Conserve Electricity:

Remember that extreme cold can drive increased electricity consumption.  Follow these easy steps to reduce consumption and lower your usage:

  • Heating can account for as much as 55% of your monthly electric bill. Setting the thermostat to 68 degrees in the winter is an easy way to reduce how much energy you use. Every degree above 68 on the thermostat can increase your bill by about 3%.
  • Conserve hot water. Wrap your electric water heater with a water heater blanket that can be found at local home improvement stores and set the thermostat to 120 degrees or medium.
  • Keep all doors and windows closed. Constant traffic will let out the warm air, forcing your heater to work harder to keep the room at the set temperature.
  • Ensure fans are turning the right way. Fans should be run at a low speed clockwise during the winter. This helps keep the cold air from blowing down on you.
  • Keep the air circulating. Don’t block heat registers or air returns with curtains or furniture.
  • Leverage the sun. During the day, open your curtains and blinds to let in the warm sunlight. Close them at night to reduce heat loss.

Stay Informed

We continuously keep our communities informed throughout a storm using the following channels:

Tags
Louisiana  New Orleans  Storm Center 
Louisiana Editorial Team
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