GILMER — A thunderstorm Wednesday night caused power outages for 9,500 meters served by the Gilmer-based Upshur-Rural Electric Cooperative, but service was restored to the overwhelming majority by Thursday afternoon, the utility said.
Only 470 meters remained out at about 2:20 p.m., said Upshur-Rural Line Superintendent Dwayne Fennell.
The storm, which began about 7 p.m., felled numerous trees and power lines, said Lynn Gray, the cooperative's community development and member communication coordinator.
She said the timeline for restoring power to the remaining meters would depend on what damage crews find.
While Mrs. Gray said the outages were widespread in the 10-county area the cooperative serves, Fennell said the Kilgore and Soules Chapel areas probably suffered the most damage.
Although Upshur-Rural sent out contracted crews and its own crews to restore service, some 3,000 of the cooperative's approximately 45,000 meters had remained without power at 6 a.m. Thursday, Mrs. Gray said.
She said trees fell on some houses, which will require repairs before service is reconnected.
In the Gilmer area itself, the storm interrupted power to about 1,500 meters served by Shreveport-based Southwestern Electric Power Company, but only 140 remained without service as of about 3:15 p.m. Thursday, said SWEPCO spokesman Scott McCloud.