Winter Storm Fern – A National Storm Event with Widespread Impacts
What You Need to Know
- Winter Storm Fern is a nationwide weather event, affecting nearly 250 million people from Mexico to Canada.
- Across the U.S., more than one million Americans are without power, underscoring the severity of this storm and the regional challenges utilities are navigating.
- Despite these conditions, SWEPCO crews are making steady, meaningful progress and restoring power as quickly and safely as possible and have reduced outages significantly throughout Sunday.
Current Situation
January 25, 2026 - Winter Storm Fern is sweeping across the country and affecting nearly 250 million people from Mexico to Canada. More than one million homes and businesses across the U.S. are without power as the storm continues to bring ice, wind, and freezing temperatures.
Here at home, SWEPCO is feeling those impacts as well. At the peak of the storm, more than 68,900 customers were without power. SWEPCO crews made meaningful progress throughout the day to reduce that number significantly. As of 7:30 p.m., about 43,550 customers across our service territory remain without power.
We know how hard it is to be without electricity during extreme cold, and every action we take is focused on restoring service safely and as quickly as possible for every customer.
Customer Resources
As repairs continue, SWEPCO is working closely with local officials to make warming stations available on our outage map so customers can find safe places to go if they need shelter.
Restoration Update
Our teams are following a pre-tested winter storm response plan - one designed to protect customers, protect crews, and restore service efficiently.
Restoration work is active across all four affected districts:
- Shreveport and Natchitoches (Louisiana)
- Longview (Texas)
- Texarkana (Arkansas region)
As neighborhoods are restored, crews and equipment are quickly shifted to support customers in the areas still without power. This allows us to move resources where they can make the biggest impact, as quickly and safely as possible.
Estimated Times of Restoration (ETRs)
Initial ETRs have been established. Those numbers could change as work progresses.
Texarkana District
- Panhandle: Restored
- Texarkana and surrounding areas: Restored 10:00 PM tonight
- Mt. Pleasant and surrounding areas: Restored 10 PM tonight
- Nashville and surrounding areas: Restored 10 PM tonight
- Parts of De Queen and Horatio: Restored 10 AM, Monday
Longview District
- Mineola: 10 PM tonight
- Gladewater: 10 PM tonight
- Longview: 10 PM tonight
- Marshall: 10 PM tonight
- Carthage: 10 PM Tuesday
- Kilgore: 10 PM Tuesday
- Henderson: 10 PM Tuesday
Shreveport District
- Bossier: 10 PM tonight
- Vivian: 10 PM tonight
- Plain Dealing: 10 PM tonight
- Haughton (most areas): 10 PM tonight
- Shreveport (city): 10 PM Monday
- Martin & Castor: 10 PM Tuesday
- Ringgold (Pine Bluff Rd area):10 PM tonight, dependent on required repairs by utility peer for upstream power
- Ringgold (Hwy 154, Springhill Church Rd, Hwy 4 area): 10 PM Tuesday
Valley District
- Natchitoches: 10 PM Tuesday
- Hornbeck: 10 PM Tuesday
- Mansfield: 10 PM Wednesday
How We’re Accelerating Repairs
To aid in our restoration for customers:
- Additional mutual assistance crews are joining our effort and are already being deployed in the field to support assessment work, tree trimming and linework, as a few examples.
- Aerial teams (helicopters and drones) are flying over some of our hardest-hit areas, helping us quickly pinpoint damage and direct crews where they’re needed most.
- An additional basecamp is being set up in the Valley District to aid restoration efforts in hard-hit areas.
What You Can Do
- Stay Off the Roads: Please avoid unnecessary travel. Clear roads help first responders and our crews access work sites safely and restore power faster.
- Stay Safe: Avoid downed power lines and treat all wires as energized and potentially dangerous. Report downed lines and other safety hazards at SWEPCO.com or by calling 888-218-3919.
- Stay Informed: For the latest outage updates and safety tips, visit SWEPCO.com or use the SWEPCO mobile app.
- Report Outages: Download the SWEPCO app to quickly and easily report outages or report outages at SWEPCO.com.
We appreciate your patience and understanding as we work tirelessly to restore power. Our crews and those who have traveled hundreds of miles to help are committed to bringing the lights back on for every customer as quickly and safely as possible.
Customer Preparedness
SWEPCO is ready and we want our customers to be ready, too. Customers are urged to prepare now for winter weather and possible power outages:
- Treat all downed power lines as energized and dangerous. Stay at least 10 feet away and keep children and pets indoors.
- If using a generator, follow all manufacturer instructions. Never use generators, grills, or camp stoves indoors.
- Customers with medical equipment who rely on electricity should have a backup plan in place in case of prolonged outages.
- Keep extra blankets, warm clothing, and flashlights readily available.
- Charge phones and essential devices ahead of the storm.
- Stay informed by following SWEPCO on social media and visiting SWEPCO.com for alerts and updates.
Get Restoration Updates
Customers should log in to their SWEPCO account to make sure we have an up-to-date cell number and email. Accurate contact information helps us reach you quickly if conditions change. We also encourage customers to sign up for outage alerts and SWEPCO email updates for real-time restoration information.
Update your information or subscribe to alerts atSWEPCO.com/Alerts. You can also check outage status anytime at SWEPCO.com/OutageMap.
