Strong storms knocked out power to more than 50,000 Arkansas customers overnight, officials say, and extreme heat forecast Saturday could create a danger for those awaiting restoration. For some residents, including thousands in Pulaski County, electricity is estimated to return as late as Sunday afternoon, according to Entergy Arkansas' outage map.
As of around 9:15 a.m., just under 54,000 customers were still without power in Arkansas. The bulk of the outages -- nearly 38,000 -- were concentrated in Pulaski County at that time.
Affected areas include portions of west and south Little Rock as well as communities just to the city's south. The utility has placed those areas in a restoration time of noon Sunday, and says that time "could change as all damage assessments are completed or if other storm activity results in additional outages."
A heat advisory will be in place from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday across central and southern Arkansas. Heat index values, which measure how the air feels when humidity if factored in, are expected to reach between 105 and 110 in those regions, forecasters said.
The overnight storms also downed numerous trees and power lines throughout the state, including central Arkansas, the National Weather Service said.
In a statement around 9 a.m., the Arkansas Department of Transportation said a portion of Arkansas 338 south of Little Rock, just west of Interstate 530, was closed because of downed power lines and trees. The agency noted that it was waiting on Entergy to respond. Check back with Arkansas Online for updates on this story.
NW News on 07/22/2018