Memphis power outage: Historic storm leaves thousands without power

Memphis Commercial Appeal

Ronnie McCarty with the Riverfront Development Corporation cuts up a downed a tree in Fourth Bluff Park on Front Street after a severe thunderstorm knocked down trees and knocked out power to most of Memphis Saturday night

A partly cloudy Sunday afternoon belied a tumultuous night before that left about 150,000 Memphis-area utility customers without power thanks to a storm system reminiscent of 2003's Hurricane Elvis and the ice storm of 1994.

By just before midnight Sunday, the number of reported outages was about 125,000, down from nearly 190,000 at its peak in the early hours after the storm and the 150,000 reported later Sunday.

From Midtown and other areas inside the Interstate 240 loop to hard-hit suburban areas such as Bartlett and Cordova, waylaid residents and businesses spent their Memorial Day weekend strategizing on how to survive for perhaps more than a week without lighting and air conditioning.

No injuries or deaths were reported, but the storm system that crept out of Arkansas and gained intensity as it crossed the Mississippi ripped trees from the ground with 80 mile per hour winds, blocking roads and doing a number on utility lines that will have crews working around the clock for days.

More:Memphis power outage: What we know

"Be patient," Mayor Jim Strickland pleaded during an afternoon update on storm damage at the Shelby County Office of Preparedness Emergency Operations Center. "We know there are interruptions, but please know that we're working on it immediately and as hard as we can."

Strickland also encouraged everyone to pull together, reminding them the area has been through similar events.

"We've been here before," he said, noting the 1994 ice storm, Hurricane Elvis and the flooding of 2011. "In all those times, we've all pulled together and helped one another. Memphis pulls together."

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What you need to know

Anyone who needs shelter is asked to contact the American Red Cross at 901-726-1690 or go to the Red Cross shelter at 2572 Park in Orange Mound.

Because of problems with the phone line, Memphis Light, Gas and Water is asking customers who need utility assistance to call 1-800-268-8648 to report outages.

More:Where can I get food and power in Memphis?

Also, AT&T said in a press release that some of its Memphis customers "may be experiencing issues with their wireless services" because of the storms. Cathy Lewandowski, spokeswoman for AT&T, said crews are coordinating efforts with local officials to restore service.

She said customers can recharge their devices at an AT&T store.

Power outages and blocked roads

Strickland said 10 crews were working to clear more than 100 trees in streets throughout the city and expected to have all roads open within a day or two.

MLGW President Jerry Collins couldn't be as optimistic on the timetable for utility repairs. He said priority would be given to the hardest-hit areas, but that it could take a week or longer to restore power fully.

He said 188,000 homes and businesses were initially without power, reduced to about 150,000 by Sunday afternoon. About 40 out-of-town contractors were called in to help.

More:Memphis power outage: Families search for relief

Collins said this is the third largest outage in MLGW history, behind Hurricane Elvis and the ice storm.

"This is going to be a week when temperatures get into the mid-80s, so it's going to be warm," he said. "We encourage everybody to think ahead and have a plan."

William Echols describes standing in his front door praying that the enormous tree swaying in his front yard would not fall on his Frayser home and kill him during a severe thunderstorm Saturday night that knocked out power to most of Memphis.

Juvenile Court officials announced the court will be closed indefinitely because of the power outage and a faulty backup generator that leaked diesel fuel into the parking lot.

All youths housed in the Juvenile Detention Center at 616 Adams have been moved to a secure location, and visitation has been suspended until further notice.

Also, the county announced in an evening update that 22 homes received severe damage, as did a few businesses and the Memphis Police and Fire Training Academies in Frayser.

Areas impacted

Many areas were largely unaffected, other than rain and some downed tree branches, and residents in those places were surprised Sunday morning to learn the extent of damage. The same was true for emergency workers.

Dale Lane, director of the Office of Preparedness, said the storm was assigned a Level 3 category as it moved through Saturday night.

"No one requested any additional resources overnight," Lane said. "But about 7 (Sunday morning) we moved up to a Level 3 as we began getting info."

The Level 3 designation spurred requests for outside assistance to help with the damage. Lane said he wasn't sure yet about federal financial aid until assessments are completed.

Meteorologist Gary Woodall characterized the storms that created all the havoc as a "significant storm that had a lot of similar characteristics to Hurricane Elvis."

"This storm, fortunately, was not quite as physically large," Woodall said. "It brought a swath of 80 mph, perhaps approaching 90 mph, winds moving along a northwest-to-southeast corridor.

"As it got into the Shelby County area, the storm got a boost from some thunderstorms to the northeast," Woodall said. "Those came together over Shelby County, and it really enhanced the winds."

More:Map shows where power is out in Memphis

Midtown received some particularly severe damage and disruption from felled trees. On Harbert, a huge true was uprooted and fell across the street about 10 p.m. Saturday, narrowly missing the house across the street.

It was a neighborhood spectacle Sunday afternoon, as neighbors pitched in with chainsaws to begin clearing debris while others stood and watched.

"I just heard it brush the house," said homeowner Shannon Benitone, who was inside with her two children.

Dianna Jones surveyÕs the damage to the sun room of her historic home on Kensington near Vollintine, after a severe thunderstorm knocked out power to most of Memphis Saturday night. Jones, who has lived in the home for over 24 years is heartbroken she will not be able to replace the original historic windows.

Neighbor Chris Wing was outside shortly before the tree came down.

"I came out about 9:45 or 10 o'clock, and the wind was pretty ferocious," Wing said. "This tree behind me was whipping around like a bush in the wind. I was a little nervous it might come down, so I went back inside the house and probably two or three minutes later we heard the fall."

Initial reports from several suburbs indicated minor damage and little disruption. A drive through Germantown showed small limbs scattered on lawns and in neighborhood streets. The city's police department posted on Twitter that the traffic signals at Johnson and Poplar, Johnson and Wolf River Boulevard and Kimbrough and Dogwood were not operating.

"Overall, we got lucky," Germantown City Administrator Patrick Lawton said.

Bartlett police reported debris across the city, but no major problems. Public Works Director Bill Yearwood said crews were removing trees from a couple of roads — Old Brownsville near Shadowlawn and on Billy Maher just north of Memphis-Arlington Road. There were some downed trees leaning on power lines.

Automobiles brave a flooded stretch of North Parkway under Watkins after a severe thunderstorm knocked out power to most of Memphis Saturday night

Lakeland City Manager Jim Atkinson said in a tweet that city crews began working at 2:30 a.m. to clear trees and debris from the road in that suburb. He indicated the work was expected to continue through the day.

"North Lakeland got hit pretty hard," Atkinson said, noting three trees down on Salem and another on Palomino Road. A downed tree blocked all of U.S. 70 near Canada Road. Since it is a state road, county crews would work on that problem, Atkinson said.

South of the state line in DeSoto County, the Northcentral Electric Power Association, which serves the eastern portion of the county, reported more than 7,800 members — about 26 percent of the association's membership — lost power about midnight, primarily north of Highway 302 and east of Hacks Cross Road.

The outages were attributed to TVA transmission infrastructure in West Tennessee.

By 1:30 p.m. Sunday, power had been restored to all but about 700 members. Contract crews were on the way to help with repairs into Sunday evening.

The so-called Hurricane Elvis to which everyone compared Saturday's storm left 339,000 customers without service and is considered by MLGW the largest outage ever encountered by the local utility.

About 200,000 customers were affected by the 1994 ice storm. Despite fewer customers left without power and less damage than Hurricane Elvis, the 1994 restoration took longer — the utility was not able to restore power to the last customer until about 17 days later.

A 2013 study by the utility company, 10 years after Hurricane Elvis, states officials learned from the disaster and are better prepared for such outages.

Staff reporter Clay Bailey contributed to this story.