Nashville sees record-breaking number of power outages after storm hits Middle Tennessee – Tennessean
It could take up to two weeks to restore all power knocked out by Sunday’s damaging wind storm that killed at least one person.
Decosta Jenkins, the president and CEO of Nashville Electric Service, asked for patience as he laid out the restoration timeline Monday morning during the city of Nashville’s daily COVID-19 briefing. The power outage brought on by hurricane force winds is considered one of the largest in the city’s history.
“Severe storms hit Middle Tennessee yesterday fast and furious and caused the largest number of power outages in my 29-year career at NES,” Jenkins said. “Straight line winds as high as 60 to 70 miles per hour knocked out power lines, downed trees and interrupted power to more than 130,000 customers.”
The storm walloped Middle Tennessee on Sunday evening, but the region is not in the clear. Another round of bad weather was expected to roll through Monday night into Tuesday morning.
And the severe wind event is just the latest crisis to blow into the region.
Communities are still grappling with the growing coronavirus outbreak in the state, and Sunday’s storm hit two months after devastating tornadoes killed more than two dozen people and damaged hundreds of buildings. The Sunday evening storm also came on the heels of the 10th anniversary of the deadly 2010 flood.
Nashville affected by massive power outage
Because the current outage is so massive, Jenkins said customers should brace for at least a week without electricity if not more. He explained the scope of work that lay ahead by comparing it to the March 3 tornadoes. The violent twisters knocked out power to 50,000 customers and it took eight days to bring everyone back on line, Jenkins said.
“The outage is widespread and large scale, and will take some time to get all power restored,” Jenkins said. “I can’t prioritize one section of town or the other.”
The storm broke 51 NES utility poles, but progress has been made. Power was restored to about 30,000 customers on Sunday night and the utility hoped to turn the lights back on for 30,000 to 60,000 more by the end of Monday, Jenkins said.
NES crews and contractors are facing additional hurdles as they restore power during the contagious coronavirus outbreak. They are practicing social distancing when possible, including limiting vehicles to just two people. The expected Monday night storms could also further complicate the restoration.
On Monday, crews from Middle Tennessee Electric Membership Corporation were working to restore power to nearly 5,000 customers. The majority of the outages were in Williamson and Wilson counties.
Firefighter dies as a result of Sunday storm
But the biggest loss on Sunday happened in Maury County.
Spring Hill firefighter Mitchell Earwood, 34, died in a weather-related incident at his home, the Spring Hill Police Department said.
He was off duty at the time, but has served as a volunteer firefighter with the Maury County Fire Department since 2009 and also was a member of the Williamson County Rescue Squad.
“Please keep this family in your prayers along with Mitchell’s close brothers at the Spring Hill Fire Department and Williamson County Rescue Squad,” MCFD said in a statement shared Monday morning. “We have lost one of the ‘good ones’ who had us in tears from the jokes or stories he was always telling. We will truly miss you buddy.”
Storm creates mess across Middle Tennessee
The storm also left a mess for residents and emergency workers to clean up. In Maury County, severe weather knocked out power, took down trees and scattered outdoor furniture.
In Nashville, flipped boats and scattered gear could be seen from the docks at Four Corners Yacht Club. The storm destroyed a 200-year-old oak tree in front of J.T. Moore Middle School.
“There are obviously many roads across the county with tree issues and line down issues where the lines pose a hazard,” Don Aaron, spokesman for the Metro Nashville Police Department, said. “Officers are there. If trees are blocking roads, officers have either put up yellow tape or there is some sort of barricade.”
The storm blew over tents at Nashville’s COVID-19 assessment centers, delaying their opening Monday, said Joseph Pleasant, spokesman for the city’s Office of Emergency Management. The coronavirus hotline was closed, too, because the health department had lost power.
In Mt. Juliet, residents could be seen clearing large tree limbs from their properties. Some homes also sustained significant damage there.
“We have a little bit of roof damage, some shingles and then we have some siding that blew loose, and then mostly just trees down,” said Van Stewart as he cleaned up tree limbs Monday morning in the Moreland Farms neighborhood on Gleaves Glen Road in Mt. Juliet. “But it came on very, very quickly. I thought at first it might have been a tornado.”
In Rutherford County, the storm tore off more than half of the roof of the main Kittrell fire station.
“The emergency came to us. We didn’t have to go to it,” Kittrell Assistant Fire Chief Randy Grogan said.
Six of the Kittrell firefighters were at the station when the storm hit. No one was injured.
“They said it sounded like a freight train going through,” Grogan said. “We actually ran six calls in two hours after the storm, and we didn’t have a delay in response at all.”
James Bennett, Scott Broden, Mike Christen and Andy Humbles contributed to this report.
Reach Holly Meyer at hmeyer@tennessean.com or 615-232-4714 and on Twitter @HollyAMeyer.
Reach Natalie Neysa Alund at nalund@tennessean.com and follow her on Twitter @nataliealund.
Published 5:32 PM EDT May 4, 2020
