05/12/2009 UPDATE: Morning briefing (VIDEO)
The loss of electricity has disrupted the lives of people in Southern Illinois, which has been compounded by property damage suffered by many residents. All of this can be very frustrating, but we want to assure you that we will continue until every light is back on. We are reaching out to the leaders of communities throughout the storm ravaged area. We want to make certain they know what is being done to get the power flowing and we want to make certain they are getting the information they need.
The Ameren Illinois Utilities anticipate the majority of all customers will have their lights back on by late Tuesday night. However, the unexpected severity of the damage in Carbondale means that service in and around that city may not be fully restored until Wednesday or Thursday. Gov. Pat Quinn has declared Franklin, Jackson and Williamson counties as disaster areas. The Ameren Illinois Utilities also have reached out by establishing temporary Customer Service Centers as follows: Southwest entrance Illinois Centre Mall, Marion; Carbondale City Hall, 200 S. Illinois Ave.; Herrin City Hall, 300 N. Park Ave., Community Food Pantry, 121 W. Illinois Ave., Carterville, and Murphysboro City Hall, 219 N. 10th.
Safety continues to be a major concern. Since many people are using portable generators, we want to remind them to never operate a portable generator indoors. When operating a portable generator, first open the main breaker or remove the main fuses before connecting the generator to your electrical system. Failure to do this could seriously injure utility crews working on outside power lines, and/or it could cause damage to a neighbor's property or the customer's own equipment.
