NEW ORLEANS, Sept. 4 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Entergy today predicted it will have power restored to 90 percent of New Orleans customers within three days, weather permitting, and electricity should be back in service to virtually all homes and businesses in Orleans Parish by Monday night.
Restoration in Algiers and in many of the suburban areas around the city -- including Metairie and Kenner -- should be essentially complete by the end of Tuesday. Many customers, of course, will have their power back well before that, Entergy emphasized.
In Plaquemines, St. Bernard and St. Charles parishes, 90 percent of affected customers will have their power restored by Sept. 12. Full restoration will occur by Sept. 15.
In 46 of the 56 Louisiana parishes where Entergy customers lost power, restoration is projected to be finished or almost completed in seven days or less to all residential and commercial customers who can accept power, the company said.
Entergy stressed, however, that restoration would take a good deal longer in other areas of Louisiana where damage from Hurricane Gustav was much more severe or access may be restricted.
In the Baton Rouge metropolitan area, where Gustav proved to be the most damaging hurricane in history, 90 percent of customers will have their electricity back on by Sept. 17. Restoration completion for the remaining 10 percent is projected there for Sept. 24.
In hard-hit Terrebonne and Lafourche parishes, 90 percent of impacted customers will have their power restored by Sept. 24. The remainder are estimated to have their electricity back by Oct. 1.
The following chart lists affected parishes alphabetically, based on the date all customers capable of accepting power are anticipated to have the lights back on:
Parishes where restoration should be 100 percent complete by the end of Sept. 3 Allen Vernon East Carroll Parishes where restoration should be 100 percent complete by the end of Sept. 4 Bienville Madison Calcasieu Morehouse Cameron Tensas Claiborne Union Franklin Webster Jefferson Davis West Carroll Parishes where restoration should be 100 percent complete by the end of Sept. 5 Caldwell Lincoln Catahoula Natchitoches Concordia Ouachita Grant Richland LaSalle Parishes where restoration should be 100 percent complete by the end of Sept. 6 Avoyelles Sabine Jackson Winn Parishes where restoration should be 100 percent complete by the end of Sept. 7 Orleans Parishes where restoration should be 100 percent complete by the end of Sept. 8 Acadia St. Landry Iberia Vermillion Lafayette Parishes where restoration should be 100 percent complete by the end of Sept. 9 Jefferson (upper portion, St. Tammany including Metairie and Kenner) Tangipahoa Livingston Washington St. Helena Parishes where restoration should be 100 percent complete by the end of Sept. 10 Ascension (except Donaldsonville) St. John the Baptist St. James Parishes where restoration should be 100 percent complete by the end of Sept. 12 Pointe Coupee West Feliciana West Baton Rouge Parishes where restoration should be 100 percent complete by the end of Sept. 15 Jefferson (lower portion only) St. Bernard Plaquemines St. Charles Parishes where restoration should be 100 percent complete by the end of Sept. 16 East Feliciana Parishes where restoration should be 100 percent complete by the end of Sept. 24 Ascension (Donaldsonville only) Iberville Assumption St. Martin East Baton Rouge Parishes where restoration should be 100 percent complete by the end of Oct. 1 Terrebonne Lafourche
The severe transmission damage Gustav caused across the Entergy system still includes at least 141 transmission lines and 130 substations out of service.
Entergy has experienced extensive distribution system damage, as well. This damage will be repaired in parallel with the transmission repairs so distribution will be ready as soon as possible when the transmission system repairs are made.
In terms of power outages, Gustav was the second worst storm in Entergy's 95-year history, peaking at about 850,000 early Tuesday. The only larger number of Entergy outages was 1.1 million in 2005 during Hurricane Katrina, which has been described as one of the worst natural disasters in American history.
Entergy Corporation is an integrated energy company engaged primarily in electric power production and retail distribution operations. Entergy owns and operates power plants with approximately 30,000 megawatts of electric generating capacity, and it is the second-largest nuclear generator in the United States. Entergy delivers electricity to 2.7 million utility customers in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. Entergy has annual revenues of more than $11 billion and approximately 14,300 employees.
For more information, go to http://www.entergy.com/
