Rocky Mountain Power scrambles to repair outages affecting thousands
Mar 2, 2024, 3:45 PM
The Rocky Mountain Power outage map showed nearly 5,600 people were without power Saturday afternoon. (Rocky Mountain Power)
(Rocky Mountain Power)
SALT LAKE CITY — Rocky Mountain Power crews planned to work around the clock this weekend repairing power lines as winds up to 65 mph pummeled Utah.
As of 3 p.m. Saturday, the utility reported 5,587 customers were without power.
Approximately 3,000 of those customers were in the area surrounding Ogden with another 2,000 customers in the Salt Lake area in the dark.
We are now seeing more storm-related calls for service including downed utility lines.
If you see a hazard, call 9-1-1.
Never approach or drive over utility lines or cross yellow police tape.
This utility line came arching near 1600 South 300 West.#SLC #SLCPD #SaltLakeCity pic.twitter.com/ePoMHZ4zEU
— Salt Lake City Police (@slcpd) March 2, 2024
The Salt Lake City Police Department tweeted Saturday afternoon that it was starting to get more storm-related calls for downed power lines.
Rocky Mountain Power crews restored power to 1,861 customers in Tooele County Saturday morning. The Utility said it was investigating the cause of that outage.
We are aware of a power outage in Tooele and surrounding areas affecting 1,861 customers. We are currently investigating the cause and working to restore services by 10:00 am. Thank you for your patience and understanding. pic.twitter.com/hiJjBafCEi
— Rocky Mountain Power UT (@RMP_Utah) March 2, 2024
High wind and winter storm warnings are in effect across Utah this weekend. These will be the strongest winds of the season, according to the National Weather Service.
“Wind is one of those trouble factors with weather,” said Tiffany Erickson, spokesperson for the utility.
Erickson said the utility has meteorologists that track inclement weather and how it could impact systems. Wind is one of the leading factors when it comes to power outages. Erickson said they’re anticipating an increase in outage reports throughout the weekend.
“It could be anything from hitting lines together to actually having debris go into lines to trees going into lines and so wind can be a big problem,” she said. “We really want to make sure that as a company, we forecast for those events.”
You can get an update on outages in your area here.
