MONMOUTH — Almost half of the Ameren Power customers in Warren County were among the more than 20,000 in West Central Illinois without power Thursday.
Many customers faced an unexpected, chilly, powerless morning in their homes and businesses. Because of the icy side roads, continued windy conditions and ice accumulation on power lines, Ameren spokesmen Leigh E. Morris said the company hoped to have "most of the power back on by midnight" but that was "entirely dependent on the weather conditions." Because of the unique circumstances of this weather system new outages were still occurring Thursday afternoon.
Heavier than expected ice accumulation and winds created a relatively rare phenomena known as "galloping conductors," which caused much of the electric power outage.
"You have to have a perfect storm scenario (for galloping conductors to develop)," said Ameren spokesperson Victoria Busch. "With a certain amount of ice accumulated on the line it changes the conductor from a circular to oval shape. Winds crossing those lines from approximately a 90 degree angle creates violent shaking which can pull wires down, break cross bars and even polls."
At 1:45 p.m. Thursday, the total number of customers without power was still increasing and had just eclipsed the 22,500 level.
"We are getting some power back on while new outages are occurring," Morris said, adding that winds as low as 12-15 MPH can create the phenomena and a dangerous environment for repair crews already dealing with icy roads and slippery surfaces.
"Our company has developed a culture of safety," Morris said. "If it can't be done safely it can't be done. In this situation we just have to wait it out (if the lines are waving violently)."
He urged patience.
"We understand this is very frustrating. We have had crews out all night and are working as quickly as we can to restore power safely," Morris said. "We just ask that people be patient with us."
Storm Reference: 20100121AIU
