The powerful ice storm that recently swept through southern Illinois caused widespread damage to Egyptian Electric Cooperative’s (EECA) system and left 6,600 members without power at its peak on Sunday, Jan. 5. The storm blanketed trees and power lines with more than half an inch of ice, resulting in hundreds of fallen trees, dozens of broken poles, and lines strained under the added weight.
The damage was significant, but as always, EECA’s linemen braved below-freezing temperatures and difficult terrain to restore power to our communities. Due to the amount of damage, EECA brought in additional crews — either contract crews or crews from nearby cooperatives — to help with system restoration.
“We had 16 line and forestry crews working long hours in some really harsh conditions,” said Shane Hermetz, EVP/General Manager of EECA. “Much of the damage we saw required significant time and resources to restore, and in many cases, pole climbing was necessary for repairs because we couldn’t get a truck to the location, which made the work even more challenging for our linemen.”
The hardest-hit areas included southern Jackson and Williamson Counties, particularly south of Murphysboro (Pomona), Carbondale (Makanda), and Marion. In addition to the damage to the system, crews battled icy roads and bitter cold as they worked day and night to restore power.
Despite the tough conditions, progress came more quickly than first anticipated. By Tuesday afternoon, just 48 hours after the peak of the storm, over 96% of the system was online, with fewer than 675 outages remaining.
“The wind finally let up, and the sun came out, which helped thaw the ice and made a big difference,” Hermetz explained. “It allowed our crews to work more efficiently, clearing hundreds of trees and limbs without new outages popping up.”
By Thursday afternoon, power had been restored to all residential members, except for a handful of isolated cases of individual service damage that had to be repaired before EECA could restore service.
Many generous members took to social media to express gratitude for EECA’s hard work:
- Dale Ritzel, a 54-year member, wrote: “I continue to appreciate the work that all of the staff does in providing excellent, safe, and efficient electricity. I commend the hard work of EECA’s linemen and, in cases like the last five days, the long hours they put in.”
- Pete Rosenbery added: “I know it’s been a struggle for you, the linemen, and those of us without power. But thank you so much for the hard work and efforts. Several in our neighborhood gave crews cookies and other goodies when they were out Tuesday night.”
- Jean Todd expressed: “Thank you so much for getting our power back on last night. It felt so good to wake up in a warm house. Your hard work in this weather is appreciated. Stay safe.”
- Donella Odum shared: “Thank you for all your hard work during an extremely difficult time. The daily updates were also very much appreciated.”
We want to take a moment to thank our members for their patience, support, and encouragement throughout this challenging event. Your thoughtfulness — from the kind words on social media to offering cookies, and even helping pull our work trucks back onto the road — made a world of difference and kept us going.
From the entire team at EECA, it is truly an honor to serve members in southern Illinois. We’re committed to being there for you, no matter the challenges, just like we have since 1938!