BEAUMONT, Texas — Both Entergy and the Jasper-Newton Electric Coop continue to work on restoring power to more than 25,000 of their customers.
In Orange, Jasper and Newton County and to some extent in South Jefferson County thousands are still waiting for their power to be restored.
Entergy restored power to more than 5,000 in Orange County overnight but there are still 17,651 customers there with out power according to Entergy.
Power was restored overnight in Jefferson County in Groves, Port Arthur, and Port Neches to about 7,000 customers and as of Wednesday morning about 1,917 were still without power in those areas.
Hurricane Laura left more than 21,000 customers of the Jasper-Newton Electric Coop without power.
As of about 8 .pm. Tuesday more than 15,000 customers' power had been restored according to the coop. About 6,000 there are still without power.
Below are updates directly from Entergy and the Jasper-Newton Electric Coop.
From Entergy...
Orange and Surrounding Areas
As of 8:30am, 17,651 customers in the Orange and surrounding areas are without power. Overnight, Entergy Texas was able to restore power to 5,000 customers in Orange and surrounding areas. Even though there are still pockets throughout Bridge City that remain without power, the main areas in Bridge City and Mauriceville (Greenwood Acres) had power restored yesterday evening.
The largest group of crews will be working the following areas:
Crews are continuing to move into the McLewis (I-10/Highway 62) and Orange downtown areas to help restore power as they had the most damage which are served by the Echo Substation, Cordrey Substation, and Front Street.
There will be crews focusing on Victory Gardens (South of Highway 87, East of Cow Bayou).
Crews will also work in the Rose Lawn area which is located behind the Orange Service Center.
Entergy Texas expects to restore most of its customers, who can safely take power by Friday, September 4.
Groves, Nederland, Port Arthur and Port Neches
As of 8:30am, there are 1,917 customers without power in the areas that include Groves, Port Arthur, and Port Neches. Overnight, Entergy Texas was successful in restoring power to 7,000 customers primarily in the Groves and Sabine Pass areas.
Workers will continue making repairs to the distribution system in Groves, Port Neches and Port Arthur areas. Customers in the Port Arthur area may experience a temporary outage this afternoon for approximately 3 hours in order to repair equipment serving that area.
Entergy Texas expects to restore most of its customers, who can safely take power by today.
Texas
As of 8:30am, Entergy Texas has 20,575 customers without power compared to the peak of 291,300 customers. This reflects that 270,275 customers have been restored since the peak of the storm.
Entergy Texas crews were successful last night in restoring an additional 12,000 customers in the Port Arthur, Port Neches, Groves, Sabine Pass and Orange areas.
Crews will continue repairs to our distribution system in the Port Arthur, Groves, Orange, Vidor, Little Cypress, Mauriceville, Pinehurst, and West Orange areas.
Crews are also repairing substations and the transmission system that serves Orange and surrounding area. The transmission system is the backbone of the electric grid and helps Entergy move power from the power plant to the lines serving customers' neighborhoods.
All remaining customers without power in Port Arthur, Nederland, Port Neches and Groves will be restored by today. We still expect the Orange area to be completed by September 4.
From the Jasper-Newton Electric Coop...
The damage from Laura caused major destruction across JNEC's service area, while leaving more than 21,000 members without power.
JNEC workers, along with 315 contractors and 19 sister cooperatives have worked diligently to restore power to our members.
Jasper-Newton Electric Cooperative has restored power to more than 15,100 meters, leaving approximately 6,000 meters without power.
Additional crews continue to arrive to assist JNEC with our restoration efforts. We appreciate your patience and understanding during this crisis.
We understand that no one wants a prolonged power outage, but that is not uncommon after a natural disaster. We hope to restore power to every member soon.
However, we encourage everyone to be prepared to be without electricity for an extended period of time. Especially, those members in the hardest hit areas of Newton and Orange counties.
We continue communicating with Entergy to determine when transmission service will be restored to our Deweyville substation.
If anyone in the home is dependent upon electricity for medical needs, it is advised that they seek an alternate location until power is restored.
We will continue to update our members on the transmission service to Deweyville and restoration progress. Downed Power Lines Assume that any downed power line is "live." If power lines are lying on the ground or dangling near the ground, do not touch the lines. Notify your utility company or local law enforcement authorities as soon as possible.
Do not attempt to move or repair the power lines. If you can, stay nearby to warn others away from the downed line.
Phone Lines and Outage Reporting With severe weather of this magnitude, phone lines can get very busy. Rest assured, Jasper-Newton Electric Cooperative has crews prepared to restore co-op members' electric service as quickly and safely as possible. Contact JNEC at 409-423-2241 or 1-800-231-9340.
