Officials push back power restoration time for Morgan City

MORGAN CITY, LA (WAFB) -

A fire at the Joseph J. Cefalu Sr Municipal Steam Plant in Morgan City knocked out power to the majority of the city Tuesday evening, but there are signs it could be restored Wednesday.

Officials initially said some residents could start getting their electricity back around 6 a.m., but a problem has pushed their estimates back to the afternoon.

St. Mary Parish is opening shelters to give people in Morgan City relief from the heat. The Morgan City Municipal Auditorium will be open for use to escape the heat for a short time. There will be NO food or water provided. Those who need a ride to the shelter can call 337-828-5703.

Officials said crews inspecting the damages from the explosion found them to be more extensive than their preliminary evaluation.

The plan is to start testing circuits when a minimal load is secured at the plant. Customers should be aware if their power turns on and off again it is probably due to the testing.

Officials ask people to please not contact the city to report that outage again.

Crews have managed to power up generators to operate the sewer and water functions. The city asks for people to continue to minimize their water use for things like toilets, tubs, sinks, etc. Officials said their drinking water is not impacted.

Mayor Tim Matte declared a state of emergency and asked for a dusk to dawn curfew.

A transformer at the plant caught fire around 6 p.m. Firefighters battled the fire for an hour before bringing it under control.

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Officials push back power restoration time for Morgan City