Duke Energy has restored electricity to more than 131,000 customers in North and South Carolina following outages caused by Winter Storm Fern. As of 2 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 26, nearly 22,000 customers remained without power across the region.
According to Duke Energy, most outages are expected to be resolved by the end of the day. However, some areas with significant equipment damage and difficult road conditions—such as Hendersonville, Travelers Rest, and Clemson—may experience extended outages into Tuesday.
“Our crews are on track to restore most outages by tonight. We’re seeing isolated pockets of more extensive equipment damage along the Blue Ridge Escarpment – in places like Hendersonville, Travelers Rest and Clemson – so some customers in those areas may not have service restored until Tuesday,” said Rick Canavan, Duke Energy storm director. “I also want to make customers aware of a text message scam that’s circulating and targeting utility customers. It mentions rolling outages and includes a link. That message did not come from Duke Energy; please avoid clicking the link.” He added: “Thank you for your patience and cooperation as crews continue their work.”
The company reports that it serves about 4.7 million electric customers in the Carolinas—approximately 3.8 million in North Carolina and nearly 860,000 in South Carolina.
With cold weather expected to persist this week, Duke Energy is advising its customers who have power restored to consider ways to reduce energy consumption as heating systems may run longer during colder-than-normal temperatures.
Suggestions include setting thermostats to the lowest comfortable setting; checking air filters for efficiency; using natural sunlight during the day by opening blinds or curtains; closing them at night to retain heat; and running ceiling fans clockwise to circulate warm air downward. More tips can be found at duke-energy.com/WinterEnergySavings.
Duke Energy is one of America’s largest energy holding companies with electric utilities serving approximately 8.6 million customers across six states and owning a total energy capacity of 55,100 megawatts. The company is investing in upgrades for its electric grid infrastructure as well as cleaner generation sources such as natural gas, nuclear power, renewables, and energy storage solutions.
Additional information about Duke Energy can be found at duke-energy.com or through its social media channels on X (formerly Twitter), LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, or via its news platform illumination.
