Jul 17, 2023

Crews working to restore power, clear roads after Kansas storm

Posted Jul 17, 2023 11:00 AM
Police working to clear streets in Great Bend-photo courtesy Great Bend Police
Police working to clear streets in Great Bend-photo courtesy Great Bend Police

BARTON COUNTY —The Sunday evening storm brought damaging winds and large hail to Russell, Barton and Stafford counties.

Sunflower Electric had more than a dozen high-voltage transmission structures down and three substations offline in Great Bend. Crews were on site repairing the damage overnight.

 Midwest Energy had many poles and wires down; the city of Great Bend was the damage epicenter, with lots of window, roof and tree damage, according to the utility. Midwest Energy crews continue to work to restore service.

Crews working overnight to restore service-photo courtesy Midwest Energy
Crews working overnight to restore service-photo courtesy Midwest Energy

Sunflower crews worked through the night to repair downed transmission structures on NE 20 Road in Great Bend. Sunflower  hopes repairs will be completed by mid-morning to early afternoon Monday morning. This should restore power to Great Bend transmission system.

Other repairs on Railroad Avenue in Great Bend will continue throughout the coming days.

As a reminder, stay away from downed power lines as you can't tell visually if a line is energized.

Storm damage in Great Bend photo courtesy Great Bend Police
Storm damage in Great Bend photo courtesy Great Bend Police

Main roads have been cleared in the city of Great Bend, according to Great Bend Fire and EMS. Not all side roads are completely cleared.  The Fire Department will send more crews out Monday morning.

Wheatland Electric also has crews out trying to restore power to the area. 

There are no reports of injuries. 

The National Weather Service will be conducting a damage survey across Russell and Barton Counties Monday investigating possible tornadoes from the storms.

Check the Post for additional details as they become available.