Winter storm causing widespread power outages

IDAHO FALLS — Thousands of people in eastern Idaho are out of power Saturday morning as a result of the ongoing winter weather.

Idaho Falls Power announced “multiple prolonged outages” early Saturday morning, while Rocky Mountain Power is showing over 12,000 customers without power as of 8:30 a.m. Idaho Power has reported multiple outages, also affecting thousands of customers.

“Due to inclement weather in our eastern region, estimated restoration times are currently unavailable,” Rocky Mountain Power said on its website. “Crews are working to safely restore power and will provide restoration times as soon as they can.”

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In Rexburg, residents are reporting that “everything south of Albertson’s” is without power.

Most of Bingham County has been impacted, too.

“Due to the amount of heavy and wet snow that we received thus far the majority of Bingham County is experiencing power related issues,” the Bingham County Sheriff’s Office posted on Facebook.

The Idaho Falls Fire Department posted a video on its Facebook page showing a power line sparking and flaming in the snow.

“If you see downed power lines, stay away and keep others clear,” the video’s caption said.

Eric Grossarth, public information officer for the city of Idaho Falls, confirmed that there are several downed power lines across the city and Bonneville County.

Fallen wires are common after severe weather events. Call 911 if you see a downed power line, a fire or any other emergency.

During an outage, keep the following in mind:

• Communicate with your power provider about downed power lines and outages, and report whether your neighbors have also lost power.
• Only use flashlights for emergency lighting, candles can cause fires.
• Keep refrigerator and freezer doors closed. Most food that requires refrigeration can be kept safely in a closed refrigerator for several hours. An unopened refrigerator will keep food cold for about four hours. A full freezer will keep the temperature for about 48 hours.
• Put on layers of warm clothing if it is cold outside. Never burn charcoal for heating or cooking indoors. Never use your oven as a source of heat. Never use space heaters as a primary heat source. If the power may be out for a prolonged period, plan to go to another location (the home of a relative or friend, or a public facility) that has heat to keep you warm.
• Turn off or disconnect appliances and other equipment in case of a momentary power surge that can damage computers and other devices. This will also prevent overloaded circuits.
• Only use generators away from your home and NEVER run a generator inside a home or garage, or connect it to your home’s electrical system.

To learn more about emergency preparation, visit www.ready.gov.

EastIdahoNews.com will update this story as more information becomes available.