Thousands still without power in Lake of the Ozarks area; Cole County cleanup continues

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Thousands of Ameren Missouri customers remained without power after the storms blew through on the July 4 weekend.

Meanwhile, Cole County was still dealing with power outages on Monday as crews worked to clear roads and restore power.

The utility's online outage map showed more than 1,300 customers powerless in Camden County and more than 2,000 each in Miller and Morgan counties. Hundreds also remained without power in Cole and Osage counties, where Osage City was closed to the public.

The outages occurred as severe thunderstorms swept through Mid-Missouri on Independence Day. Damage from high winds was reported around Mid-Missouri, concentrated south of Interstate 70 from the Lake of the Ozarks to Cole County.

An Ameren spokesperson said the utility is hoping to restore power by Tuesday. Broken power poles are slowing down the work -- the Mid-Missouri area had more than any part of the state Saturday, said spokesperson Evan Asher.

The Northwest Fire Protection District in Camden County reported winds of up to 80 mph hit the area Saturday. Widespread damage was recorded in Climax Springs, Edwards and Roach, and electrical infrastructure suffered significant damage, the district wrote in a Facebook post.

Electric cooperatives also reported hundreds more outages in Cole, Osage, Morgan and Camden counties.

Jefferson City Public Works crews were on Mohawk Drive on Monday morning, clearing downed trees, according to a city government Facebook post.

Osage City in Cole County remained closed to the public on Monday while crews cleaned up and made repairs from extensive storm damage.

Boone Electric line workers were sent to help repair downed lines for the Co-Mo Connect cooperative in Tipton, according to a news release. They're expected to be on the ground for three to four days, the release states.