UDWI REMC Gives Update on Storm Damage and Restoration

Utilities District of Western Indiana REMC would like to thank members for their patience as we work to assess damages and restore power as a result of the recent storm system. Line crews are out making repairs and working to restore power safely and efficiently. We’ve also called in assistance from other co-ops, as well as tree and line contractors, and we thank those crews for their willingness to help as our crews have worked through the night and continue to be in the field.

At this time, we do not have estimated restoration times due to the volume and severity of the weather-related outages. Please know we are working hard to get all members on as quickly as possible, while keeping our crews safe as they work in these conditions. The damage is extensive across our service territory, and we still have over 5,000 members without power as of 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, June 26. Currently, we have over 20 broken poles and anticipate finding more as the day continues. Outages caused by broken poles can take three hours to replace, in addition to the time spent returning to headquarters to get the necessary equipment.

As a reminder, members can report an outage by calling the UDWI office (812-384-4446), using the UDWI app (UDWI REMC in the App Store and Google Play Store), or via UDWI’s texting service. During a large storm situation, please be sure to use one of these options instead of reporting through Facebook to help ensure our dispatch team sees your outage. Comments and messages during this time can be hard to track due to the large quantity. Dispatch is also working hard to update the Outage Management System which has been overloaded throughout the night and some areas may be experiencing glitches.

We share in your frustration as our employees, line crews, their families and our entire community feel the impact of this storm and many of us are still without power as well. Thank you again for your patience and understanding, and please be safe!