The combination of ice and wind has left thousands of Iowans in the dark. At 10:15am, MidAmerican Energy reported just over 16,000 customers in Iowa without power. Most of those customers are located in Des Moines, with other large outages reported around Sioux City, Fort Dodge and Council Bluffs.
Alliant Energy spokesperson Ryan Stensland says his company had more than 4,000 customers lose power. Those outages are scattered around Creston, Newton, Marshalltown, Mason City, Ottumwa and Washington. “We’re pretty much all over the map,” Stensland said. Much of the state is under an Ice Storm Warning through tonight, with freezing rain leaving everything coated in one-quarter inch of ice.
“We have had some reports of lines down because of icing and wind, however one of the things really causing the majority of the problems right now is tree branches and tree limbs coming into contact with those power lines,” Stensland said.
Here are the links to find out about power outages in Iowa: