Neighbors trapped Friday morning with power lines down and no second exit

Photos submitted by a reader. Anytime you see a story, send us pictures at [email protected]

Storms rolled across Arkansas overnight, leaving at least one Saline County neighborhood trapped behind a downed power line. With only one exit to the neighborhood, this means residents were unable to go to work or school or appointments.

Entergy’s outage map states that 297 customers are affected in the area. Their statement says The estimated time of restoration is Noon Friday, but that could change as all damage assessments are completed or if new thunderstorms move into the area.”

: Neighbors on and off Barth Road trapped until repairs are made.

: Entergy customers all down Vimy Ridge Road were affected by power outages.

Brandon Guillot, the Director of Saline County Office of Emergency Management stated on Friday morning that there was previous discussion about planning among County officials to possibly require at least two exits to neighborhoods of a certain size. The discussion apparently ended after it was noted that the measure would hurt business.

Saturated ground and high winds overnight took down trees and powerlines.

Benton Fire Chief Russ Evans stated that he has been working to get an ordinance passed on the matter since 2016. He said the county relies on revenue from homes, and for that reason, opponents to the ordinance did not want to discourage developers by causing extra cost.

If you see a downed powerline, do not cross it and do not exit your vehicle. Call 911 and follow these instructions from Entergy.

The county released the following statement around 8:15am:

“Entergy Crews are in the process of repairing power lines in the area of Barth Road in Alexander. Barth Road had previously been closed due to downed power lines but has reopened. Please be cautious as Entergy Crews work to restore power along Barth Road.”