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August 31, 2020 - The Shelby County Emergency Management office reports as of 8:50am on Monday, August 31, 2020, TxDSHS has reported 2 new cases and the cumulative case count is now 433. The death count is 14 for Shelby County. (The DSHS website dashboard shows 19 deaths for Shelby County as of Aug 25th.)
According to the state's algorithm to determine recoveries, there are 4 new recoveries reported and the total of recoveries is 391. The number of active cases is 28.
Breakdown of cumulative cases by zip code and ages:
Active Cases in each zip code: (Change in Data)
Center (75935) - 14 (1 new, 4 recoveries)
Joaquin (75954) - 4
Shelbyville (75973) - 2
Tenaha (75974) - 5 (1 new)
Timpson (75975) - 3
Cumulative Cases in each zip code:
Center (75935) - 287 (1 new)
Joaquin (75954) - 29
Shelbyville (75973) - 27
Tenaha (75974) - 52 (1 new)
Timpson (75975) - 38
Ages of Confirmed Cases:
Ages 1 to 20: 41 cases (1 new)
Ages 21 to 40: 142 cases (1 new)
Ages 41 to 60: 128 cases, 4 deaths
Ages 61 to 80: 79 cases, 4 deaths
Ages 81 to 100: 36 cases, 6 deaths
Age unknown: 7 cases
August 29, 2020 - Shelbyville Street in Center at the intersection of Elliot Street is the scene of a collision with a pickup truck and utility pole August 29, 2020 at around 4:30pm.
Utility crews finished working to repair the damage after several hours and the roadway is now clear. The truck involved was earlier removed from the incident location.
Center Police Department Officers are investigating the crash. The driver walked away from the crash scene with law enforcement officers and EMS.
It appeared the truck was eastbound when it left the roadway to the right and collided with the utility pole head-on.
According to the Center Police Department, when officers arrived at the scene they located the driver of the 2013 Ford F-150 James Heiman, 27, of Shelbyville.
Intoxication was suspected by the officers, a field sobriety test was administered, and afterward he was arrested and charged with driving while intoxicated. (pending DWI investigation).
The crash was investigated by Center Police Officers Maegan Wright and Robert Lee.
August 29, 2020 - The Texas Dept of Emergency Management has shipped a load of bagged ice to Shelby County. If you are still without power and are in need of bagged ice you may go to the Center Fire Department at 110 Patton St. in Center until 3pm today, August 29, to receive some.
August 28, 2020 - Deep East Texas Electric Cooperative is currently reporting 21,971 outages:
- Jasper County: 1,603
- Nacogdoches County: 1,207
- Newton County: 1,798
- Panola County: 726
- Sabine County: 6,496
- San Augustine County: 3,990
- Shelby County: 6,130
At this time, below is our estimations for restoral times:
- The majority of Nacogdoches, Panola, San Augustine and Shelby County (with the exception of the Huxley and Hurstown area) should be restored within 3-5 days.
- Sabine, Newton and Jasper County (with the exception of those around Toledo Bend Lake) and those remaining in Shelby County (Huxley and Hurstown) should be restored within 7-10 days.
- Members around Toledo Bend Lake should be restored within 2 weeks.
Please keep in mind that these are estimates. It is our goal to fulfill these estimates and our hope that we can provide power sooner than anticipated.
Currently we have over 200 men on the ground working and more on the way to restore power as safely and as quickly as possible.
Work is focused on repairing the transmission lines and main lines serving large areas. With these repairs completed we can then focus on the damages that you may be seeing along your street or yard.
- At this time, if anyone in the home is dependent upon electricity for medical needs, it is advised that they seek an alternate location until power is restored.
- If you encounter a downed line, always consider it live and dangerous. Do not get near the line or attempt to move or cut trees off the line. Please report all downed lines and outages by calling 1-800-392-5986. For prompt reporting, please have the telephone and meter number associated with your account available.
August 28, 2020 - Southwestern Electric Power Co. (SWEPCO) estimates most customers in the Shreveport-Bossier area will have power restored by 10 p.m. Wednesday, and for Central Louisiana customers by 10 p.m. Thursday.
"Hurricane Laura was unprecedented, causing widespread damage to the power grid," said Drew Seidel, SWEPCO vice president of Region Distribution Operations. "Scattered thunderstorms forecast for today could cause new outages and hamper our progress on repairs."
The initial estimates are for restoration to most customers in the area. Estimates by town will be provided later today and will be updated as further assessment and repair work continues. Your power may be restored sooner.
As of 9:30 a.m., about 107,000 customers were without power, including 103,000 in Louisiana.
As crews respond to hundreds of downed trees, poles and wires, SWEPCO employees also are continuing to assess the damage across Louisiana.
By this afternoon, nearly 3,000 line and tree personnel from 14 states and Canada will arrive and begin working to help SWEPCO employees restore power.
"We recognize that high heat is a challenge for the public and our crews working to restore power," Seidel said. "Please check on your family and neighbors who are without power and who spend a lot of time alone."
Customers without power who are on life support systems or need uninterrupted electric service for health reasons should make alternate arrangements.
Hurricane Laura smashed into SWEPCO's Valley District Thursday morning as a Category 2 hurricane with 100 mph maximum sustained winds. It continued through northwest Louisiana and southwest Arkansas as a Category 1 hurricane and tropical storm.
At the peak, 136,000 SWEPCO customers in Louisiana and East Texas were without power.
Report outages at SWEPCO.com or through the SWEPCO app, available on Google Play and the App Store.
For updates and photos see SWEPCO.com and, follow SWEPCO on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
· When to call an electrician
o SWEPCO cannot connect power to a home or business if there is damage to the service entrance, which is owned by the customer.
o Customers need to have a qualified electrician repair this damage before power can be restored. The service entrance includes the metal box housing SWEPCO's meter, the "weatherhead" pipe on top of the meter box, the service entrance cables running from the weatherhead through the meter box to the inside panel box, and other related facilities. Similar responsibilities apply to underground service.
o After repairs are made, contact SWEPCO to have power restored.
· Working safely
o Workers are practicing social distancing and other measures to stay healthy and prevent the spread of coronavirus, making the recovery effort especially challenging.
o Maintain at least six feet of physical distance between yourself and SWEPCO field personnel as we all play a crucial role in preventing the spread of coronavirus.
o Also, be careful when driving or walking in all utility crew work zones.
August 28, 2020 - As of 9 AM, Deep East Texas Electric Cooperative is reporting 23,058 outages:
Jasper County: 1,044
Nacogdoches County: 1,043
Newton County: 1,802
Panola County: 714
Sabine County: 6,697
San Augustine County: 3,655
Shelby County: 8,100
Since Hurricane Laura’s arrival, DETEC has welcomed over 150 contractors to assist with restoring power. Despite the heavy downpours of rain and thunderstorms we are now receiving, all crews are working to restore your power as safely and as quickly as possible.
Much of yesterday’s time was spent assessing damage across the 8 counties we serve. This territory includes over 7,000 miles of line and 34 substations. With hundreds of broken poles, lines down and scattered pine trees, estimated outage restoration times are not yet available. Work is focused on repairing the transmission lines and main lines serving large areas. With these repairs completed, we will be able to gain more knowledge as to how long restoration will take for those remaining. We hope to provide more detailed information at that time.
At this time, if anyone in the home is dependent upon electricity for medical needs, it is advised that they seek an alternate location until power is restored.
If you encounter a downed line, always consider it live and dangerous. Do not get near the line or attempt to move or cut trees off the line. Please report all downed lines and outages by calling 1-800-392-5986. For prompt reporting, please have the telephone and meter number associated with your account available.
August 27, 2020 - As of 5 PM, Deep East Texas Electric Cooperative is reporting 24,861 outages:
Jasper County: 1,609
Nacogdoches County: 1,287
Newton County: 1,805
Panola County: 1,083
Sabine County: 8,580
San Augustine County: 4,506
Shelby County: 5,991
All of DETEC’s 115 employees are working along with 110 contractors to restore power as safely and as quickly as possible.
After the storm moved through, DETEC began assessing damage across the 8 counties we serve. This territory includes over 7,000 miles of line and 34 substations. Due to the nature of hurricane damage, much of this area is still being surveyed. With hundreds of broken poles, lines down and scattered pine trees, estimated outage restoration times are not yet available. Work has began to repair the transmission lines, substations and lines serving large areas. With these repairs completed, we will be able to gain more knowledge as to how long restoration will take. We hope to provide more detailed information tomorrow.
At this time, if anyone in the home is dependent upon electricity for medical needs, it is advised that they seek an alternate location until power is restored.
If you encounter a downed line, always consider it live and dangerous. Do not get near the line or attempt to move or cut trees off the line. Please report all downed lines and outages by calling 1-800-392-5986.
August 27, 2020 - As of 1 PM, Deep East Texas Electric Cooperative is reporting the following weather related outages:
Jasper County - Outages 1,578; Meters Served 1,839
Nacogdoches County - Outages 1,357; Meters Served 10,154
Newton County - Outages 1,808; Meters Served 1,879
Panola County - Outages 1,070; Meters Served 1,273
Rusk County - Outages 0; Meters Served 9
Sabine County - Outages 8,460; Meters Served 9,092
San Augustine County - Outages 4,491; Meters Served 5,696
Shelby County - Outages 6,710; Meters Served 11,367
TOTAL - Outages 25,474; Meters Served 41,309
At this time DETEC crews are in the early stages of restoration as we survey damages and assess needs.
August 27, 2020 - As of 9 AM, Deep East Texas Electric Cooperative is reporting the following weather related outages:
Jasper County - Outages 1,544; Meters Served 1,839
Nacogdoches County - Outages 1,741; Meters Served 10,154
Newton County - Outages 1,804; Meters Served 1,879
Panola County - Outages 548; Meters Served 1,273
Rusk County - Outages 0; Meters Served 9
Sabine County - Outages 8,206; Meters Served 9,092
San Augustine County - Outages 3,435; Meters Served 5,696
Shelby County - Outages 4,876; Meters Served 11,367
TOTAL - Outages 22,154; Meters Served 41,309
As conditions allow, crews are surveying the damage to begin restoration.
August 28, 2020 - The Shelby County Emergency Management office reports as of 7:45am on Friday, August 28, 2020, TxDSHS has reported 5 new case and the cumulative case count is now 431. The death count is 14 for Shelby County. (The DSHS website dashboard shows 19 deaths for Shelby County as of Aug 25th.)
According to the state's algorithm to determine recoveries, there are 4 new recoveries reported and the total of recoveries is 387. The number of active cases is 30.
Breakdown of cumulative cases by zip code and ages:
Active Cases in each zip code: (Change in Data)
Center (75935) - 17 (4 new, 1 recovery)
Joaquin (75954) - 4 (2 recoveries)
Shelbyville (75973) - 2
Tenaha (75974) - 4 (1 new)
Timpson (75975) - 3 (1 recovery)
Cumulative Cases in each zip code:
Center (75935) - 286 (4 new)
Joaquin (75954) - 29
Shelbyville (75973) - 27
Tenaha (75974) - 51 (1 new)
Timpson (75975) - 38
Ages of Confirmed Cases:
Ages 1 to 20: 40 cases
Ages 21 to 40: 141 cases (2 new)
Ages 41 to 60: 128 cases, 4 deaths
Ages 61 to 80: 79 cases (2 new), 4 deaths
Ages 81 to 100: 36 cases (1 new), 6 deaths
Age unknown: 7 cases
August 28, 2020 - State Highway 87 from FM 415 south to FM 1645 has been reported to Shelby County Today as being flooded as of 7:39am.
State Highway 7 and U.S. Highway 84 in Joaquin have shut down as a result of the rain.
As of 8am, Southview Circle just south of San Augustine Street in Center is flooded with high water of around 18 inches. Travelers should use caution and avoid this area until the water recedes.
U.S. Highway 96 at Huana Creek, south of Center, has been reported to have water over the bridge. Passenger cars should use caution. There is also water across the road at U.S. 96 just south of Loop 500.
FM 2787 has been reported as having flooding in Joaquin.
Additional roadways confirmed to have flooding include:
- CR 2026.
- U.S. Highway 84 East.
- U.S. Highway 84 and 59 intersection.
- SH 87 North.
Flooding at U.S. Highway 84 just before the intersection with State Highway 7 has resulted in necessary evacuation of apartments in that vicinity.
Driver’s should use caution when traveling these areas, and expect other areas of the county to have similar, if not worse, circumstances during the current downpour of rain.
August 27, 2020 - The Shelby County Courthouse will remain closed Friday, August 28 due to the power outage.
August 25, 2020 - The Shelby County Courthouse will be closed on Thursday, August 27, due to possible high wind and flash flooding.
The courthouse will reopen on Friday, August 28.
August 27, 2020 - FM 417 is free-flowing again, as of 2:22pm. Small debris remains on the roadway at different locations, and travelers should continue to use caution.
(1:20pm) - FM 417 from Shelbyville is currently impassable.
TxDOT personnel have blocked the road while crews are working to clear trees and power lines.
FM 2694 is passable, with caution, as crews are still working to remove trees from the roadway.
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