Duke, LG&E warn of down lines as crews prepare to restore power from ice storm

CLARKSVILLE, Ind. (WDRB) -- Duke Energy officials said there are about 1,000 crews currently on standby in their southern Indiana coverage area.

Some crews are even traveling from out of state to help out in Indiana and across the river in Kentucky, where LG&E has access to 600 line technicians.

"Our crews will certainly be working — first and foremost, as safely as possible — but as quickly as possible to restore service," said Natasha Collins, a spokeswoman with LG&E. "So we really do appreciate everyone's patience given the conditions we'll be dealing with."

Officials said it only takes about a 1/4 of an inch to cause tree limbs to fall and create power outages.

"If you see a downed power line, assume it's live," said Lisa Huber, a spokeswoman for Duke Energy. "Do not touch it. Do not go near it. Please call Duke Energy, report the outage, report the line down (and) be as safe as possible."

When responding to outages, Indiana Electric Cooperatives said crews generally prioritize transmission lines first because they can carry power to tens of thousands of people. Next would be substations, which help distribute electricity over large areas. After that is the main distribution lines that you see along roadway, which carry electricity to towns or neighborhoods.

IMAGES | Ice Storm 2022 begins with coating of ice in some areas

Images are coming in, as ice begins to accumulate aross Kentucky and Indiana. Email your images to webteam@wdrb.com.

"If the trees are sagging on lines and causing problems, is the line broken? Is the pole broken? Those are the kind of things you've got vegetation crews there to assist to make sure you can get there to repair that damage," Huber said.

To view current power outages with LG&E, click here.

To view current power outages with Duke Energy, click here.

For the latest update on roads in southern Indiana, click here.

For the latest from KYTC, click here.

For the latest conditions and closures from TRIMARC, click here.

Louisville's "snow team" updates its progress on a map of its snow routes. click here.

To check the latest forecast from our team of WDRB meteorologists, just go to our weather page.

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