93 Percent of Iowans Still Without Power Are in Linn County

At approximately 12:30 this afternoon, it will have been two weeks since the derecho hit Cedar Rapids. Many Linn County residents are still waiting for their power to be restored.

Power Outage reports that, as of 8:30 this morning, 1,405 Iowa households don't have electricity. Linn County accounts for 1,304 of those or 93 percent of the total. According to Power Outage, 1,300 are Alliant Energy customers, which the other four are customers of Linn County REC.

On the morning of August 10, the idea of being without power for two weeks undoubtedly seemed like a virtual impossibility to most Iowans. However, so was a storm that would make a wide swath through the center of the state that would bring wind gusts to 140 mph and sustained winds for at least 90 miles-per-hour for close to an hour. Unfortunately, it was another reminder to never say never.

I was one of the lucky ones. I was without power for almost exactly five days. I still feel guilty about that and the fact that our house suffered only minor damage. All around us, neighbors lost multiple trees. We have one city tree in front of our home that will almost certainly be cut down. However, I have a neighbor who lost seven of the eight trees on his property.

Our landscape and our city will never look quite the same but ask almost anyone and they'll tell you they too feel lucky. When you look around, you wonder how just one person was killed locally during the storm.

I salute the numerous power companies who've assisted our local providers and the National Guard and tree companies that have also stepped up to assist them. Two weeks ago, the idea of people being without power for two weeks may have seemed impossible. When I look around now I'm amazed it's almost all back on. For those of you who still are waiting for the lights to come on, I sincerely hope today is your day.