MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) - Thousands of Memphis residents were still without electricity in their homes and businesses Tuesday, days after a weekend storm lashed the city with powerful winds, knocking down massive trees and power lines.
The storm passed through Arkansas and then strafed the Memphis area late Saturday and early Sunday with winds exceeding 60 mph, the National Weather Service said. No deaths were reported. Two people were injured.
It could have been worse. The storms passed through a busy downtown Memphis, sending parking signs and other debris flying as people walked on sidewalks and motorists slogged through traffic. Trees fell on homes and residential streets. Street and traffic lights were rendered useless, causing traffic accidents.
More than 180,000 customers of Memphis Light, Gas & Water lost power, company president Jerry Collins said. About 70 crews from other utility companies have come to Memphis to help restore power. Collins said service won’t be fully restored for a week.
Collins said it’s the third largest outage in Memphis’ history, surpassed only by a 1994 ice storm and Hurricane Elvis in 2003. As of Tuesday evening, more than 59,000 customers were still without power, according to the company’s website.
About 25 people remained in an emergency shelter, officials said. Demand for power generators, ice and coolers had grown significantly at home improvement stores and other retail outlets.
Local and state officials are gathering damage estimates from Shelby County - which includes Memphis - and other Tennessee counties farther east that suffered significant damage from the weekend storms. U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen, a Memphis Democrat, has asked the state’s Republican governor, Bill Haslam, to request assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
In a letter to Haslam, Cohen said FEMA has programs that could help with debris removal and provide temporary housing through rental assistance, among other things.
Meanwhile, Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland has received preliminary approval from the City Council to spend up to $6 million in city funds on recovery and cleanup, media outlets reported.
Recovery efforts will continue Wednesday.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.