UPDATE: We Energies crews continue to respond to thousands of weather-related power outages in Kenosha County, according to utility officials (2024)

More than 8,000 We Energies customers across Kenosha County are without power as of late Wednesday night, a number that is expected to continue to change as utility crews respond to outages into Thursday, according to We Energies officials.

The We Energies outage map at 11:42 p.m. reported 8,185 customers were without power in the county. The vast majority of those customers were in the Kenosha, Somers, with a large concentration just east of the University of Wisconsin- Parkside and the Village ofPleasant Prairie. Dispatchers with Kenosha Joint Services fielded many calls regarding downed wires and poles on fire Wednesday afternoon and evening during the ice storm. According to We Energies, as many as 29,653 customers in the Southeast regional service area remained without power late Wednesday into early Thursday.

Crews working through the night

Brendan Conway, a spokesperson for We Energies said crews continue to make "steady progress restoring power." Crews, he said have restored power to approximately 10,000 customers since the storms first moved in earlier in the day.

"We are finding extreme ice covering trees and branches and that is coming into contact with our power lines. Some of our equipment is also coated in ice causing outages," Conway said. "We expect, even though we are restoring power, we will continue to see new outages overnight as branches and trees continue to fall and come into contact with our equipment."

He said all available crews and contractor crews are working and that We Energies would be "bringing in fresh crews overnight and into the early morning hours."

"We will work nonstop until power is restored to all customers," he said."

We would encourage customers to report their outage to us through our app, online or by giving us a call," he said. "We would also remind customers to stay at least 25 feet away from any downed lines and report them to us and their local police department right away." Any power outages should be reported, either through the company's app, online or by calling 800-662-4797.

Capt. Dale Howser, a battalion chief with the Kenosha Fire Department, also warned residents to stay away from downed power lines and to call 911 if one is spotted.

Traffic signal outages

Law enforcement reported no major crashes Wednesday evening, but the outages have been widespread throughout the county. In the city of Kenosha, the loss of power has darkened a 20-block swath from French Drive, or 51st Avenue, to westbound Green Bay Road which has affected traffic lights, according to Lt. Matthew Strelow of the Kenosha Police Department.

"We have officers manning a couple of intersections," he said.

Schools, meetings and religious services were canceled and closed Wednesday following the ice storm warning issued by the National Weather Service, which commenced at 9 a.m. Wednesday. The warning is expected to continue through noon Thursday, according to meteorologist J.J. Wood. The worst of the storm's icing was expected to continue through the very early morning hours before tapering off, which could lead to an earlier expiration for the weather warning.

"Then, the bulk of the heavier precipitation is going to move off to the north and northeast," he said. "After that, we'll probably continue to see some light freezing drizzle as we get into (Thursday) morning."

Due to dangerous conditions, the front counter of the Kenosha Police Department was closed at noon Wednesday. The Kenosha Police Department remains open.

"If you call for police services, we are still out there and will respond," the department posted on social media.

Wood said the Kenosha and Racine county areas saw ice accumulations of a quarter to a half inch, as predicted.

The forecast Thursday calls for a possible rain shower during the morning commute around 8 a.m., and cloudy most of the day with high temperatures in the mid-30s and lows in the mid-teens Thursday night. Friday expect a slight chance of snow with partly cloudy to cloudy skies during the morning into the afternoon with temperature highs in the low to mid-20s, holding steady later into the evening. For Saturday and Sunday, partly cloudy skies are also in the forecast with highs in the upper 30s, possibly touching 40 on Sunday, and lows in the mid-20s to upper 30s.