Power outages in Sumter, Clarendon and Lee counties due to Hurricane Ian: Sept. 30, 2022

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Sumter County power outages continued to fall by 5:40 p.m. Friday. At that time, 1,022 households in Sumter were without electricity. That is down more than 1,000 total since 3:45 p.m., when totals reached 2,072 homes without power. Clarendon County is in the worst scenario in the tri-county region with 1,594 households without electricity as of 5:40 p.m., according to totals from Duke Energy and regional electric cooperatives.

5:40 P.M.
HOUSEHOLD POWER OUTAGES BY COUNTY:
Sumter: 1,022
Clarendon: 1,594
Lee: 808
TOTAL: 3,424
* Areas served by BREC, Duke Energy and Santee Electric Cooperative.

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Between 3:45 and 4:30 p.m., Sumter County households without power reduced by almost 500. Totals reported at 4:30 p.m. for Sumter were 1,580 households, down from 2,072 at 3:45 p.m., according to Duke Energy and Black River Electric Cooperative totals.

4:30 P.M.
HOUSEHOLD POWER OUTAGES BY COUNTY:
Sumter: 1,580
Clarendon: 1,740
Lee: 528
TOTAL: 3,848
* Areas served by BREC, Duke Energy and Santee Electric Cooperative.

3:45 P.M.
HOUSEHOLD POWER OUTAGES BY COUNTY:
Sumter: 2,072
Clarendon: 1,353
Lee: 1,613
TOTAL: 5,038
* Areas served by BREC, Duke Energy and Santee Electric Cooperative.

3:00 P.M.
HOUSEHOLD POWER OUTAGES BY COUNTY:
Sumter: 1,757
Clarendon: 1,118
Lee: 804
TOTAL: 3,679
* Areas served by BREC, Duke Energy and Santee Electric Cooperative.

11:30 A.M.
Black River Electric Cooperative was reporting about 441 households without power in Sumter County. BREC also reported another 27 households without power in Clarendon County. There were no outages reported in Lee County.  BREC serves parts of four counties: Sumter, Kershaw, Lee and Clarendon.

BREC spokeswoman Brenda Chase said officials expect the worst effects from the storm to be between 3 and 6 p.m. today. 

Duke Energy is reporting about 250 households without power in Sumter, Clarendon and Lee counties.

10 A.M.
Black River Electric Cooperative was reporting about 105 households without power in its Sumter County coverage area, officials said. Outages were not necessarily in a defined area of Sumter, but spread throughout the county. BREC also reported at the time that another 23 households in Kershaw County were without power. BREC serves parts of four counties: Sumter, Kershaw, Lee and Clarendon.

“We are expecting the worst conditions after lunch,” BREC’s Brenda Chase said. “Our crews are ready to roll.”

Bruce Mills contributed to this article.

HOW TO REPORT AN OUTAGE:
DUKE ENERGY CUSTOMERS
Customers who experience an outage during a storm can report it the following ways:
- Visit duke-energy.com on a desktop computer or mobile device.
- Use the Duke Energy mobile app — Download the Duke Energy App from a smartphone via Apple Store or Google Play.
- Text OUT to 57801 (standard text and data charges may apply).
- Call the automated outage-reporting system, at: 800.POWERON (800) 769-3766.

Customer service specialists will be available to manage customer calls should the need arise, with additional corporate responders from across all Duke Energy jurisdictions available to assist as needed.

There is also an interactive outage map at https://www.duke-energy.com/outagemap where customers can find up-to-date information on power outages, including the total number of outages systemwide and estimated times of restoration.

Source: Duke Energy

BLACK RIVER ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE CUSTOMERS
In the event of a power outage, call Black River Electric Cooperative at (803) 469-8060 or after 5 p.m. or weekends call 1-844-431-BREC (2732).

When calling, please be prepared to provide us with the exact name as listed on your Black River account, your account number or your actual service location address along with a current working phone number. After power has been restored to your area, Black River employees may contact you to verify that your lights are back on.

Also, leaving your porch light on will help restoration crews verify that your power has been restored.

Source: Black River Electric Cooperative website