Ice storm knocks out power to hundreds of homes

Hundreds of homes are without power because of the ice storm. Cass County Electric Cooperative line crews are working to restore power to 220 customers in Valley City, Fort Ransom and Enderlin. And Dakota Valley Electric says approximately 150 customers are without power in the Ashley, Forbes and Kulm, ND areas. About a dozen poles are down but a DVE statement says most of the outages are being caused by wire breaks. They say as the ice and frost melt and fall off the lines, it causes them to ‘gallop’ as they slap together. 

Scattered outages are also popping up in the Edgeley, Lamoure and Oakes, stretching across the Hankinson area into Richland County. Dakota Valley Electric says crews are on the way from Northern Plains Electric Cooperative of Carrington. Linemen will continue working until the power is back on. However, the power companies say as the winds pick up, everyone should be prepared for a power outage. All homeowners are advised to have extra food and water on hand, and if they have a generator, to have it ready.

Dakota Valley Electric customers can report damaged lines or poles by calling 1-800-342-4671. Cass County Electric Cooperative customers can call 701-356-4499 or 1-800-248-3292 to report an outage.