Idaho Falls, Idaho Power Outage Today

How reliable is Idaho Falls Power service in Idaho Falls?

Idaho Falls Power is a city-owned utility with 32,782 customers. In 2024 its customers averaged 0.65 interruptions and 72 minutes (72 minutes) without power, so the average outage lasted 111 minutes.

Little of that came from major storms (about 0%). Without major event days the average is still 72 minutes, so the figure mostly reflects everyday faults: failed equipment, tree limbs, animals and vehicles hitting poles.

Outages are infrequent, fewer than one per customer a year, and each was fixed in 111 minutes on average.

For comparison, Idaho as a whole averaged 233 minutes and the United States 614 minutes. That puts Idaho Falls Power below the state average, which is better.

Among the 8 utilities in Idaho with at least 5,000 customers that report to the federal government, Idaho Falls Power ranks 3rd for the fewest outage minutes (1 is best). Nationally, 77% of the 926 utilities of that size reported more outage minutes in 2024.

These are the figures the utility itself reported to the US Energy Information Administration (Form EIA-861, 2024) and describe the whole service territory, not one street. Your own address can be better or worse.

Storm season and outages in Idaho Falls

NOAA’s Storm Events Database lists 128 storm reports for Bonneville County from 2015 through 2026, most often thunderstorm wind (76), hail (21), flood (10), and funnel cloud (8). The busiest full year was 2018 with 22 reports and the quietest was 2019 with 5, so the risk changes a lot from one year to the next.

Reports peak in July (39 since 2015), followed by August and May. October is outside those three months, so an outage now is less likely to be weather-related.

NOAA’s own narratives name power outages in 11 storm episodes in Bonneville County since 2015, most often in July. That count is a floor, since the database records outages only when a spotter or agency mentions them.

What the most common storm types in Idaho Falls do to the grid:

• Thunderstorm wind. Straight-line wind pushes trees and limbs into distribution lines. These outages are usually local, a street or a neighborhood at a time, and crews clear them circuit by circuit.
• Funnel cloud. Funnel clouds are a warning sign for the wind damage that usually follows.
• Flash flood. Floodwater reaches ground-level transformers, meters and low-lying substations. Utilities may shut power off ahead of the water on purpose, and wading near flooded equipment can electrocute.

Storm reports that name Idaho Falls

Within Bonneville County, 51 NOAA storm reports since 2015 name Idaho Falls as their location or in their description: thunderstorm wind (26), funnel cloud (6), flash flood (6), and hail (5). That is about 40% of the county’s reports, so Idaho Falls accounts for much of the county’s storm history. Reports naming Idaho Falls are most common in July. The busiest full year was 2018 with 19. These reports record 1 injury in total.

In NOAA’s own words, storms that left Idaho Falls without power:

• August 15, 2024 (thunderstorm wind): “About 2,600 customers in Idaho Falls without power due to thunderstorm winds.” Source: NOAA Storm Events Database
• August 6, 2021 (thunderstorm wind): “Thunderstorm winds knocked out power to 176 customers west of Idaho Falls airport.” Source: NOAA Storm Events Database
• July 27, 2019 (thunderstorm wind): “About 200 people were without power in Idaho Falls in the Holmes and Cleveland street areas due to strong winds damaging power lines.” Source: NOAA Storm Events Database

Who a power outage hits hardest in Idaho Falls

Home heating in Idaho Falls is mixed: 47.8% of occupied homes use electricity (US 41.3%) and 49.2% use piped natural gas. Either way, furnaces and heat pumps need grid power to run, so a winter outage means a cold house for most households.

Residents aged 65 or older are 13.6% of the population in Idaho Falls, below the US share of 17.2% and 14.1% report a disability (US 13.3%). These are the households most likely to depend on powered medical equipment such as oxygen concentrators, CPAP machines and refrigerated medicine. If someone in your home does, ask Idaho Falls Power whether it keeps a priority or medical-needs list, and register before the next storm rather than during it.

About the housing: 38.8% of the housing in Idaho Falls was built before 1970 (US 35.5%).

Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 (housing, heating fuel, age and disability tables).

Backup power and electricity use in Idaho Falls

The average Idaho Falls Power home used about 951 kWh a month in 2024 (US average 892 kWh), an average draw of 1.3 kW around the clock, and paid about 9.2 cents per kWh (11.5 in the state, 15.8 nationally), roughly $88 a month.

Keeping only the essentials on (a refrigerator, router, a few lights and phone chargers, about 400 watts) through an outage that lasts the average 111 minutes takes less than 1 kWh. A portable power station or a power bank covers that; a generator is more than most households here need for a typical outage.

A generator must never run indoors, in a garage or near a window; generator and food-safety rules are in the power outage guide linked below.

If the power is out in Idaho Falls

About 64,718 people live in Idaho Falls, the 4th largest of the 4 Idaho cities on this site. Report the outage to the utility so a ticket exists for your address, then check Idaho Falls Power’s outage map for an estimate. If neighbors have power and you do not, report it again: the fault may be on the line to your house alone, which is a separate repair.

Idaho Falls power outage map

Idaho Falls Power’s outage map has the official restoration estimate for your address; the count above comes from residents. Food and generator safety: power outage guide.

Idaho Falls power outage questions