LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- LG&E/KU crews continue to work to restore power to thousands of customers. 

As of 5 p.m. Monday, about 29,000 people were waiting for power to be restored after Friday's fierce storms. 

Officials with LG&E/KU said they're making good progress now that extra crews have been brought in from out of town. Workers are now concentrating on restoring power to neighborhoods starting with down lines or broken utility poles.

Late Monday afternoon, about a dozen linemen were making repairs on three downed utility poles at Watterson Trail and Walnutwood Way in Jeffersontown. Officials said areas where poles are completely down are top priority. 

Crews started those repairs around 1 p.m. Monday.

LG&E said it can take anywhere from eight to 10 hours to get repairs made when damage is that extensive. For perspective, across the state of Kentucky, nearly 500 utility poles have been reported down since Friday. Once those large outage areas have been fixed, LG&E crews will move on to other areas.

Greg Lindsey, LG&E electric, technical training and public safety manager, said he knows people have been waiting a long time but emphasized that crews are also in for very long days while the power is off, and many workers have no power at their own homes. 

Greg Lindsey, LG&E electric, technical training and public safety officer

Pictured: this image grab taken from video dated March 6, 2023, shows LG&E electric, technical training and public safety officer Greg Lindsey explains the difficulties linemen face in restoring power to hundreds of thousands of customers after powerful storms toppled 500 utility poles in the state. (WDRB photo)

Lindsey said about 500 surrounding homes can expect to have power restored once crews finished replacing the three downed utility poles.

"It's not a sprint, and I know everybody wants their lights on," Lindsey said. "But there's a lot of damage and you just can't run into it. It's a marathon. We're in it for the long haul. And we're gonna be doing it for several days, 16 hours a day. And you know, you got to take your time and be safe as you're doing it."

LG&E officials say the power outage map is up to date and the estimated restoration time for all customers is no later than 11 o'clock Wednesday night, but some customers could have power restored sooner -- or later, depending on circumstances. 

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