UPDATE 9:55 A.M.: 7,602 members are without power and the crew is in the air flying the line. Power has been restored along the Sterling Highway – Soldotna South to Reflection Lake Road. All of K-Beach Road and Sterling Highway – Reflection Lake Road South to Anchor Point are without power.
UPDATE 9:36 A.M.: Update – Power has been restored to about 1,300 members in Anchor Point and 300 members in the Soldotna area. Currently, the crew is flying the line and we are working on restoring power.
ORIGINAL 6:00 A.M.: Heavy and severe thunderstorms are believed to be the culprit behind widespread power outages that knocked out power to thousands of Homer Electric Association members on Thursday morning. According to Keriann Baker with HEA, over 13,000 members without power in the K-Beach, Kenai, Soldotna, Kasilof, Homer, and Anchor Point areas.
The Billy Thompson and Kasilof substations are down on the 115 Line and crews have been called in. The specific cause of the outage is unknown but believed to be weather related.
Areas along the Sterling Highway from Soldotna through Kasilof south to Anchor Point and into Homer, including Kalifornsky Beach Road, and parts of the Kenai Spur Highway are affected by the power outage. As a result, prepare for stop lights to be affected. If a traffic light at an intersection is not functioning due to a power outage, yield to other drivers in the same manner when approaching from a four way stop. When it is your turn, proceed with caution.
HEA crews will continue to assess the situation.