SWEPCO Responds as Winter Storm Fern Hits
January 24, 2026
SWEPCO’s ArkLaTex region received significant ice accumulation overnight, causing power outages and hazardous conditions across much of the service area. As of 10:30 a.m. Saturday, about 17,000 SWEPCO customers are without power in southern Arkansas, Northwest Louisiana and Northeast and East Texas. Crews are actively assessing damage and restoring service where it is safe to do so. This is a prolonged and historic weather event and customers should remain prepared, too, as this storm may intensify as we move through the weekend.
Key Facts:
- Ice is impacting power lines, trees, and equipment, creating dangerous conditions.
- SWEPCO has mobilized crews and staged resources in Shreveport, Louisiana; Texarkana, Arkansas; and Longview, Texas to improve response times.
- Mutual assistance crews from Indiana and sister utilities are already on site, with additional crews enroute from Florida, Michigan, Indiana, and California to support restoration efforts.
- SWEPCO has more than 6,300 personnel on the response team, to include linemen and forestry crews on the ground across the region.
- Hardest-hit areas so far include DeQueen, Arkansas; Texarkana and Atlanta/Henderson/Carthage, Texas.
Safety Message:
We urge the public to stay home and off the roads unless absolutely necessary. Clear roadways allow first responders and SWEPCO crews to access work sites safely and restore power faster. Please avoid downed power lines and treat all wires as live.
- Never go near a downed power line.
- Report downed power lines and other safety hazards to the Customer Service Center at 888-218-3919.
Customer Resources:
- For outage updates and safety tips, visit SWEPCO.com or use the SWEPCO mobile app.
- The outage map can be found at https://outagemap.swepco.com/
- Report outages through the app, online at swepco.com/outages/report/
About Southwestern Electric Power Company (SWEPCO)
Southwestern Electric Power Company (SWEPCO), headquartered in Shreveport, Louisiana, delivers safe, reliable, and affordable electricity to more than 500,000 customers in Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas. SWEPCO is an American Electric Power (Nasdaq: AEP) company. Learn more at SWEPCO.com. Connect with us by following Facebook.com/SWEPCO, Twitter.com/SWEPCOnews, Instagram.com/swepco, Youtube.com/SWEPCOtv and LinkedIn.com/company/swepco.
