Over 100,000 Without Power In Shelby County As Winter Storm Moves In

More than 100,000 people in Shelby County are without power as an ice storm moves through West Tennessee. The storms impacting Memphis are part of a larger system cutting a path through the Midwest into the Northeast.

According to WREG, Memphis Light, Gas and Water (MLGW) is working to restore power to thousands of Shelby County residents on Thursday (February 3). As of 1 p.m., there were 2,334 outages affecting 115,239 customers, but crews, both local and outside crews, were called in to work 16-hour shifts to restore power.

"All hands are on deck," said Gale Jones Carson, spokesperson for MLGW.

A winter ice storm warning is in effect for much of West Tennessee through Thursday night, with ice expected to accumulate following freezing rain and falling temperatures. Memphis officials are monitoring the road conditions as the storm moves through.

"We're going to work 24 hours a day as long as we need to," said Memphis Public Works Director Robert Knecht.

Ice has already started to accumulate on higher surfaces like tree branches. A home in Memphis caught a tree crashing down on its doorbell camera, sharing the footage with FOX 13 Memphis. The video, seen below, shows a tree in a neighboring yard topple over before crashing into the ground, causing a cloud of ice to erupt from its branches.

MLGW customers who are still without service are asked to call the Outage Hotline at 901-544-6500. If there is an emergency, such as a gas leak or downed power line, the company asks that you report it by calling 901-528-4465.