Updated: Jan. 14, 11 a.m.
Electric cooperatives restored power to thousands of consumer-members over the weekend after grappling with ice, snow and freezing rain from the second significant storm of the new year.
Winter Storm Cora struck Friday, just four days after Winter Storm Blair caused widespread outrages across the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic states. Cora hit co-ops hardest in Texas, Arkansas and Missouri.
In Texas, Bowie-Cass Electric Cooperative in Doughlassville—near the Arkansas border—reported outages Friday to more than 13,000 meters, which is about a third of its system. Most of the outages were caused by ice-laden limbs breaking from trees and falling on power lines. With the help of other Texas co-ops, Bowie-Cass had restored power to all meters by Tuesday.
“Thank you to all of our members for your patience and support as our guys and the guys from our sister cooperatives and contract crews have worked to restore power after Winter Storm Cora!” the co-op said on Facebook.
Five other Texas co-ops—Jasper-Newton Electric Cooperative in Kirbyville, Houston County Electric Co-op in Crockett, Rusk County Electric Cooperative in Henderson, Trinity Valley Electric Cooperative in Kaufman, and Cherokee County Electric Cooperative Association in Rusk—rushed in to help Bowie-Cass restore power. The co-op also had assistance from two contract line crews and 12 right-of-way crews, with more on standby.
In Arkansas and Missouri, co-ops had restored nearly all outages by Tuesday morning. The Electric Cooperatives of Arkansas reported a total of 6,500 outages at the state’s 17 electric co-ops Friday morning, but that number had plummeted to less than 50 by Tuesday.
In Missouri, co-ops reported a total of about 165 consumer-members without power as of Tuesday, down dramatically from a peak of 12,000 on Friday.
“It encourages me to think of one of the seven cooperative principles in trying moments like these,” said Paul Montgomery, general manager of Black River Electric Cooperative in Fredericktown. “Through the spirit of ‘cooperation among cooperatives,’ we were able to overcome challenges together.
“We deeply appreciate the invaluable support we’ve received from our fellow cooperatives for sending their resources, as well as our partnering line and right-of-way contractors in our time of need. I am thankful for our membership, which has been openly supportive, whether it be a lending hand, cup of warm coffee, or an encouraging word to our lineworkers and support staff.”
Despite a rare snowstorm in the Atlanta area, co-ops in Georgia reported less than 1,100 outages statewide on Friday. That number had dropped to under 470 by Tuesday morning. Most of the remaining outages were in the Metro Atlanta area and northern Georgia.
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Electric Co-ops Work to Restore Outages From First Major Winter Storm of 2025
Erin Kelly is a staff writer for NRECA.
Header Photo By Kryssia Campos/Getty Images