OG&E: Thousands Of Oklahomans Without Power, May Take Days To Restore

Oklahoma Gas and Electric said some power outages across the metro could last for days. 

Spokeswoman Kathleen O'Shea said priority is given to facilities like hospitals, police and fire departments.

“We start with our circuits, because you have about 1,500 to 2,000 people on a circuit. So, you start getting those on, because you can get a lot of people on,” O’Shea said. “People may not see an orange truck in their neighborhood right away, but we still may be working on a circuit that will bring their power on.”

Tuesday, school districts including Oklahoma City, Mid Del, Piedmont, Putnam City, Deer Creek, and Bethany all canceled classes due to power outages. O’Shea said it is likely some schools may still be without power into Wednesday.

“A lot of that is going to depend on where the outage is coming from. It’s not like we can get every school back at once, because they are all on different parts of our grid,” she said. “As we are working out on circuits and getting power restored, some may come back on. I think we’ll try to get out if we can, but it’s going to take some time for the schools, too.”

According to OG&E, there are 882 restoration personnel on the ground, with 200 coming from across the state as well as Texas, Mississippi and Louisiana. Crews are working 16-hour shifts with an 8-hour rest period.

“It’s more like an ice storm in the fact that the damage is everywhere. A tornado goes in one path, well, that’s not what we have here,” O’Shea said. “We have damage all over the place.”