LAKE COUNTY, Fla. – Frigid temperatures and strong winds impacted Lake County on Thursday, leading to power outages and prompting the opening of cold weather shelters for residents needing relief from the cold.
Duke Energy reported scattered power outages throughout the day, citing falling debris caused by gusty winds as the primary reason for the interruptions. Some residents said the sudden outages came at the worst possible time as temperatures continued to drop.
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Scott Simons, who lives off South Clayton Street in Mount Dora, said his power went out shortly after 1 p.m. while he was inside his home.
“I was just going to put some lunch in the microwave and everything went dark,” Simons said.
He described strong winds at the time of the outage, saying debris was falling in his driveway and trees were swaying back and forth. Duke Energy later confirmed falling debris caused the outage.
Simons said he was fortunate to have recently installed a generator at his home, which helped him get through the outage during the cold weather.
“They just hooked it up and tested it two days ago, and this morning the county came and did the inspection,” Simons said. “The same day of the inspection, the power goes out.”
As temperatures are expected to dip into the 20s and 30s through Friday, warming centers have opened across the county to provide shelter.
Lifepoint Church in Eustis activated its cold weather shelter Thursday night after being contacted by the Lake County Office of Emergency Management, according to shelter manager Alex Puig.
“This is us looking out for the community,” Puig said. “People can come in here and eat.”
Puig said residents may seek shelter for several reasons, including power outages or electrical system failures.
“A power outage. A failed electrical system. Anything could affect someone’s household,” he said.
Lifepoint Church plans to open its cold weather shelter nightly through Monday.