LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Thousands of people are without power in the Louisville area as a winter storm moves through the region.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said Monday morning that about 93,000 people were without power, but that number is fluctuating. Local utility companies are working to restore the power across the state. 

"The bottom line is – we've got one day to try to get power back to as many Kentuckians as possible before the wind chill gets down close to zero," Beshear said in a news release.

In Louisville's south end it's a harsh reality for many residents. Winter Storm Blair has left more than 1,300 people in Jefferson County without power, turning homes on Palatka Road and Bruce Avenue into frigid shelters.

“I’ve got some candles lit in the house just to keep the room warm enough for my pets and everything,” said Darrin Woodle, one of many residents without power.

The storm swept through the region on Sunday, dropping nearly nine inches of snow, sleet, and freezing rain on Louisville. The weight of ice has caused tree limbs to snap, taking down power lines and leaving thousands in the dark.

“The biggest issue for us has been limbs covered in ice and trees falling into lines,” said Chris Whelan, a spokesperson for LG&E.

Jefferson County wasn’t the hardest hit. Officials report that Lexington and Elizabethtown experienced even more significant damage, leaving tens of thousands without electricity. LG&E said they were prepared for the storm, bringing in additional help to respond quickly.

“We’ve had about 1,000 restoration personnel on site since before the storm hit,” Whelan said. “We have 40 crew locations across the state, and we move them as needed to the hardest-hit areas.”

For many, staying warm has been a challenge.

“We’re staying warm in there,” said Emily Baker-King, another south end resident. “I think the last time I checked, it said 56 degrees. Not horrible, but not great.”

While residents wait for power to return, the spirit of neighbors helping neighbors is shining brightly, even in freezing conditions. Louisville Metro Emergency Services Deputy Director Kelly Jones echoed the importance of community during emergencies.

“If we take care of one another, we always come out on the other side—and we come out ahead,” Jones said.

That message is resonating in the south end, where neighbors like Woodle are stepping up. After clearing snow off cars for his neighbors, Woodle jumped in to help a truck that had slid into a ditch.

“I’ve got nothing better to do on a day like today,” Woodle said. “Power’s out—I might as well.”

Even in the toughest storms, moments like these remind us of the power of community.

LG&E said crews have made significant progress and expect to have most power restored to Jefferson County by 11 p.m. Monday night.

Some neighborhoods lost power due to the thick ice weighing down power lines.

People in Bullitt County are also dealing with loss of power.

Ashley Fair, who lives in Oaks Pointe, spent time on Monday scraping ice off her car. It's been a while since she remembers a snow storm like the one that hit the area on Sunday.

"This one is kind of rough right now," said Fair, whose neighborhood was without power Monday morning.

At one point, Fair said her home got as cold as 49 degrees.

"I went and got my bed covered up with about three covers, hand my cat with me, just trying to stay warm and ride it out," Fair said.

Power lines weighed down by ice caused some of the outages.

"it's the weight of that, it takes those a little of a quarter of an inch of ice to add hundreds of pounds to one span of power lines between power poles," said Joe Arnold with Kentucky Electric Cooperatives.

Kentucky Electric Cooperatives supports electric co-ops around the state, including Salt River Electric Co-Op. As of 4 p.m., more than 2,000 customers were without power. Arnold said areas with co-ops tend to be the hardest areas to service.

"There are challenges that come along with the beauty of rural Kentucky and some of those areas can be more difficult to reach, especially when trees are in the way or if there's snow and ice," Arnold said.

There are warming centers available in the counties with the most power outages. According to a news release, warming centers are open in Anderson, Bullitt, Clark, Fayette, Floyd, Hardin, Henderson, Johnson, Meade, Spencer and Union counties.

"We're working with local officials to get the word out to those who have lost power and have medical devices that need to run," Beshear said. "We need those folks to be moving toward a warming center. If you don't have power by midday today – you need to be looking at finding a warming center or location that has power."

Eric Gibson, director of Kentucky Emergency Management, said Kentuckians seeking a warming shelter should contact their local emergency management officials. 

In Jefferson County, LG&E estimated 1,322 customers were without power as of 12:25 p.m. Monday. Whelan, vice president of communications for LG&E, previously said the company has 500 personnel ready to respond including linemen, tree trimmers, supervisors and employees working in the plants and substations. 

As of 11:25 p.m. Monday, LG&E reported only a few hundred homes without power.

Duke Energy was reporting about 55 power outages north of Austin as of 11:25 p.m.

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