BENTON COUNTY, ARKANSAS, Ark. — Linemen crews have been working around the clock to get the power back on for all those affected. As of June 3, Carroll Electric said 25 accounts were still without power, down from 64,000 outages.
Despite not having power, people in the community are still finding the silver lining. Haven Nutt and her fiancé have been without water and power for eight days. They live on a well near Beaver Lake. They were two people among thousands who lost power early Sunday morning as tornadoes swept through Benton County.
"That first day was just scary, and we were just running on straight adrenaline," Nutt said.
Since their property was on a long dirt road riddled with downed trees, the couple was trapped/
"We could not get out for a couple of days, and we didn't even have any water," she said. "So the first whole day, my fiancé and I, we eventually asked a neighbor for a bottle of water because we were cutting chainsaws all day. We didn't have a sip of water till like 3 p.m. that day."
Their property doesn't just have their home, it also features a farm and three Airbnb rentals called "Heart Haven." Unfortunately, they had guests staying there during the storms.
"I just immediately felt so much guilt that they had to experience that while they were here staying," Nutt said. "While we were trying to cut and clear the driveway, one group was trying to check out and get home to their kids. And so we're just racing against the clock trying to cut these trees out for them to get out."
To her surprise, retreaters not only kept their reservations but also helped clean up and enjoy the scenery.
"They jumped in and were helping us cut and move trees," Nutt said. "It was an amazing day in that sense that it just brought so many people together. They just I think had really good attitudes. They shifted those expectations. They're like, 'Yeah, we came out here to be in nature anyway, like, this is why we're here.' So if anything, it just brought that experience to just a higher level."
Guests were charged a discounted rate for the Airbnbs, but as of Monday morning, the water and power came back on for the entire property.
"I started screaming," Nutt said. "I literally started dancing and screaming. I'm not even exaggerating. I've never been so happy, and I think it just makes you really appreciative for those things that we take for granted constantly."
Although this was an eye-opening experience, she's prepared to weather the next storm that rolls through.
"I'm definitely going to invest in that gas-powered, like full ... it'll just kick on when the power goes out so that this doesn't happen again because this was pretty rough," she said.
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