Thousands In Austin Left Without Power After Storm, Fire Sparked

AUSTIN, TX — A strong thunderstorm swept over the city knocked out power for more than 5,200 utility customers across the city.

Austin Energy officials said 5,200 of their customers remained without electricity as of 8:15 p.m. "Our crews are working safely to restore power," utility officials wrote on Twitter. By 8:35 p.m., the number of residents without power was down to 1,815 affected customers.

To check on outages, visit: Check on outages: http://outagemap.austinenergy.com

Most of the outages appeared to be centered on the north portion of the city, with two outages affecting nine utility customers south of downtown. The biggest single mass outage was one affecting more than 700 customers north of downtown.

In addition to the outages, a small fire was sparked in the northeastern part of the city when sagging power lines made contact with vegetation. The incident at 3202 Jack Cook Dr. sparked a small fire, but it was quickly extinguished before it damaged an adjacent home.

Austin Energy officials took the opportunity to warn homeowners to the dangers of plant life near power lines, with instructions on reporting loosened lines: "Power lines and vegetation do not mix!" officials wrote on Twitter. "If you come across downed power lines, please stay away and call (512) 322-9100 to report the location of the line."

With the possibility of more storms on Wednesday, utility officials urge residents to register to outage alerts. Already in use by 63,000 utility customers, the service alerts when the power is out along with restoration updates.

Registration is easy by texting the word REGISTER to 287846 in getting started.