Judge Clay Jenkins held a press conference Tuesday to issue a disaster declaration.
After severe storms Tuesday morning caused damage and a multi-day power outage, Judge Jenkins had the Dallas County DA prepare a declaration of disaster for the judge to sign Tuesday morning.
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"The damage itself is not unusual," said Judge Jenkins. "The extent of the damage and the number of customers affected is unusual."
Dallas emergency management said it is important to stay clear of any downed power lines and to assume that they are still live. Also, steer clear of downed trees that may be hiding downed power lines that could be live.
If you are using a portable generator do not run it inside your house or garage, it could cause carbon monoxide poisoning.
Oncor representatives said there were more than 600,000 customers without power Tuesday morning. The Electric Delivery Company has crews working to asses damages and repair impacted areas.
"Stay off the roads, our crews need room to work," said Grant Cruise, Oncor representative. "If you have to get on the road give those folks a wide berth and make sure you're paying attention to their safety and yours as well."
The company is asking for patience because many areas will require complete reconstruction and take time to be repaired, said Cruise.
Reported outages:
CHEROKEE: 1,228
COLLIN: 66,399
DALLAS: 345,840
DENTON: 45,063
ELLIS: 6,320
FREESTONE: 1,237
HENDERSON: 3,584
JOHNSON: 3,039
KAUFMAN: 19,120
NAVARRO: 1,396
ROCKWALL: 21,389
TARRANT: 46,110
VAN ZANDT: 8,102
WISE: 1,926
To report an outage text OUT to 66267 or use the Oncor app. For updates and a map of power outages check oncor.com.
