BENTON COUNTY, ARKANSAS, Ark. — Just after multiple tornadoes struck Northwest Arkansas on May 26, upwards of 60,000 electric customers in Benton County alone were without power.
Since then, linemen from across the country have gathered and are working tirelessly to make repairs and restore power to the thousands without it.
A midday update from power company SWEPCO on May 29 detailed that additional help is still arriving into Northwest Arkansas to aid in restoring power, with nearly 700 linemen now working with the company to fix the outages.
In a morning update on May 29 shared by Carroll Electric, a power company whose customers were most impacted by the storms in Benton County, over 1,100 power poles were identified as broken and over 1,000 people were reported to be working on restoration efforts.
As of 6:30 p.m. on May 30, there were still over 12,000 customers without power in Benton County.
Crews have been using the Frisco Station Mall in Rogers as a command center to rest, resupply, and go back out trying to restore downed lines and broken poles.
The work hasn't been done without tragedy, however.
On Wednesday, Benton County coroner Daniel Oxford told 5NEWS that a lineman in his mid-40s died of a heat related cardiac event.
While the man's name has not yet been released, Oxford confirmed that he was from out of state and was working as part of an electrical crew to clear brush and trees.
To honor the hard work of the brave people working to bring power back to the region, businesses in 5COUNTRY are offering special deals while residents are banding together to feed them and keep them clean.
The City of Pea Ridge posted to Facebook that it was gathering volunteers to help wash and fold laundry for the linemen that have come from surrounding states to help Northwest Arkansas rebuild and recover.
The post said that volunteers can meet at 7:30 a.m. to do laundry from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Thursday, May 30, at Battlefield Laundry in Pea Ridge.
The city says volunteers were at the laundromat on May 29 to prep the staging area and around 40 residents showed up Thursday morning to wash and clean 20 linemen's laundry bags.
The owner of the Battlefield Laundry says they plan to continue this work every Tuesday and Thursday until all the powerlines are repaired.
Also in Pea Ridge, the Blackhawk Barber Shop is offering free haircuts to those working to restore power.
"In appreciation of all the work that has been done by linemen and right away crews, we are offering free haircuts with credentials the week of June 3rd thru the 8th," the barber shop said on Facebook.
Down the street, the City of Rogers took to Facebook to thank workers for their efforts.
"A heartfelt thank you to the tireless workers who have been assisting Rogers in our time of need. We are grateful for your dedication as our community recovers and rebuilds," the city said.
The City of Bentonville also shared some love for linemen.
"A huge thank you to Bentonville Electric and all city crews for their relentless efforts in making this possible," the city said. "We have been so grateful for teams from all over the tristate area who have come to Bentonville to assist."
With some estimated restoration times still days away, some near Monte Ne as late as June 2, linemen will continue to work around the clock to fix outages and restore power to Benton County.
SWEPCO adds that even if power lines are restored, residents should make sure the weather head on their home that connects to powerlines is not damaged. If it is, the customer should contact a professional electrician to get it fixed so that power can be fully restored.
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