TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Tucsonans still without power today can pick up ice at Vista del Prado Park, 3250 S. Jessica Ave. starting at 11 a.m.
Tucson Electric Power is distributing ice for customers whose electricity is still out due to a storm Tuesday night. TEP says, about 46 power poles across the Tucson area were damaged.
16 of those were damaged in the area east of South Kolb Road near East Escalante Road, where the largest remaining outage is reported this morning.
"Crews are working as quickly as possible to repair power lines and hope to begin restoring service to those customers later today via temporary connections to an adjacent section of our local grid," TEP shared on its website. There is no current estimate for when power will be fully restored.
Residents around the area were concerned for their homes as they witnessed the storm.
Robin Griggs saw the damaged poles last night across from where she lives. She said," I’m not the only person around my neighborhood that was worried about what’s going to happen to my house, you know, is my glass going to break? What’s going to crash into it? The winds were that strong to snap a power pole, then what can happen when a tree or something falls into the house?”
Residents without power hope it will be restored soon. Stephanie King's power has been out since last night. She said she is worried for her dogs, and her job.
“Being worried about what’s in the freezers and refrigerator, and the dogs are having a little bit of anxiety. Just not being sure of what’s going on, how to work, because I work from home,” she said.
TEP is also asking residents in the vicinity east of South Kolb Road near East Escalante Road, where the majority of damage occurred, to conserve energy this afternoon to limit strain on the power grid in the area. They say this will limit the possibility of additional outages.
Some methods they suggest for conserving power include:
- Precooling their homes and setting the thermostat to 78 degrees
- Avoid using large appliances
- Use ceiling fans
- Avoid using your pool pump until the evening
Customers who rely on medical equipment are encouraged to sign up for TEP's Medical Device Alert program by calling (520) 623-7711.
If you happen to see a power pole on the ground, TEP also issued a reminder to stay clear of them and report them to 911.
According to the TEP outage maprestoration is still in progress for approximately 480 customers in the area as of 11 a.m.
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Anne Simmons is the digital executive producer for KGUN 9. Anne got her start in television while still a student at the University of Arizona. Before joining KGUN, she managed multiple public access television stations in the Bay Area and has worked as a video producer in the non-profit sector. Share your story ideas and important issues with Anne by emailing anne.simmons@kgun9.com or by connecting on Instagram, Twitter or LinkedIn.
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Reyna Preciado is a reporter for KGUN 9, she joined the KGUN 9 team in July of 2022 after graduating Arizona State University. Share your story ideas with Reyna by emailing reyna.preciado@kgun9.com or by connecting on Instagram, or Twitter.
