Tri-County Electric Membership Corporation provides restoration update

ALLEN COUNTY, Ky. – On Tuesday, the Tri-County Electric Membership Corporation provided an update on efforts to restore power outages impacting its members.

“For our members who are waking up to another morning without power: we know how difficult this is, especially in these extremely cold conditions. Many of our Tri-County employees—including leadership—are without power at home as well. We understand the hardship this is causing, and restoring service safely and as quickly as possible remains our top priority,” the company said.

Tri-County provided the following updates as of Tuesday:

• Tri-County Electric says it is reading meters daily using technology that communicates with power lines.
• When an outage occurs, that communication is interrupted and actual meter readings are unavailable.
• In those cases, the prepaid system automatically estimates usage based on your average usage from the previous 14 days.
• This is only an estimate. Members without power are not actually using electricity.
• Once power is restored and your meter is read again, the system will reconcile your account, according to Tri-County, and you will only be billed for actual usage.

Restoration Progress

Despite extremely challenging conditions, crews are making significant progress:

• Approximately 12,500 members were restored Monday.
• In addition to its crews, since Monday morning, they have doubled the number of contract crews and mutual aid linemen to 40 crews assisting.
• These crews are from neighboring cooperatives and qualified contractors, and they will remain here as long as necessary.
• With additional help on the ground, we anticipate another productive day of restoration.

Why Restoration Is Taking Time

This ice storm caused widespread, severe damage across our system:

• Heavy ice brought down trees, power lines, and poles
• Many damaged areas are difficult or unsafe to access due to blocked roads and hazardous conditions
• Repairs must be made in a specific order—starting with equipment that restores power to the greatest number of members first, then moving into neighborhoods and individual services
•  You may not see a truck on your street or road yet, but that does not mean your outage has been overlooked. Crews may be repairing damage farther up the line that must be fixed before power can safely reach your home.

Member-Owned Equipment Reminder

If your home has damage to the weather head, riser pole, meter base, or service entrance, those repairs must be completed by a licensed electrician before we can reconnect service. In some cases, an electrical inspection may also be required.

“Our crews and support staff are working long hours in dangerous conditions to serve our members safely. We will continue to provide updates as work progresses. Thank you for your patience, your understanding, and your support as we work through this challenging event—together,” the company said.