INDIANAPOLIS — Friday night's weather system from Hurricane Helene brought wind gusts peaking in the 50 to nearly 70 mph range and caused significant damage across parts of Indiana.
As of 11 a.m. Saturday, Duke Energy reported 7,817 customers without power, according to the utility's outage map.
In the metro area, AES Indiana reported 39,195 customers without power.
"More than half of customers have been restored; however, crews continue to work to get the remaining 43,000 customers restored as quickly and safely as possible," said Claire Rice, senior director of external affairs for AES.
Rice said restoration effects will occur throughout the day, given the extensive damage to poles and infrastructure from downed trees.
AES officials urge everyone to stay away from downed power lines or poles and report them immediately to 317-261-8111.
Hurricane Helene left an enormous path of destruction across the southeastern U.S., killing at least 52 people. According to an Associated Press tally, the deaths occurred in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia.
