Wilmington, North Carolina Power Outage Today

How reliable is Duke Energy service in Wilmington?

Duke Energy is an investor-owned utility with 1,616,285 customers. In 2024 its customers averaged 1.69 interruptions and 1,803 minutes (about 30 hours) without power, so the average outage lasted about 17.8 hours.

About 92% of that time came on major event days, the severe-weather days that utilities report separately. On ordinary days the average falls to 141 minutes. A handful of severe-weather days, not everyday faults, set this utility’s year.

The long average outage is the notable figure: when the lights went out for Duke Energy customers, they stayed out for about 17.8 hours on average, which is long enough to spoil refrigerated food and strain medical needs.

For comparison, North Carolina as a whole averaged 1,441 minutes and the United States 614 minutes. That puts Duke Energy above the state average.

Among the 44 utilities in North Carolina with at least 5,000 customers that report to the federal government, Duke Energy ranks 41st for the fewest outage minutes (1 is best). Nationally, 6% 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 Wilmington

NOAA’s Storm Events Database lists 196 storm reports for New Hanover County from 2015 through 2026, most often thunderstorm wind (59), flash flood (57), flood (34), and tornado (16). The busiest full year was 2015 with 43 reports and the quietest was 2021 with 5, so the risk changes a lot from one year to the next.

Reports peak in September (42 since 2015), followed by August and October. October is one of the three busiest storm months here, so it is a good time to charge backup batteries and check the flashlights.

NOAA’s own narratives name power outages in 6 storm episodes in New Hanover County since 2015, most often in January. 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 Wilmington do to the grid:

• 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.
• 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.
• Tornado. A tornado destroys poles and lines along its path. Repairs there mean rebuilding rather than reconnecting, so restoration takes days instead of hours.

Storm reports that name Wilmington

Within New Hanover County, 63 NOAA storm reports since 2015 name Wilmington as their location or in their description: flash flood (20), thunderstorm wind (18), flood (9), and tornado (8). That is about 32% of the county’s reports. Reports naming Wilmington are most common in September. The busiest full year was 2015 with 11. These reports record 2 deaths in total.

Who a power outage hits hardest in Wilmington

84.4% of occupied homes in Wilmington are heated with electricity (US 41.3%). In a winter outage those homes lose heat the moment the power fails, and electric furnaces and heat pumps are too large to run from a portable generator. Warm layers, blankets and a plan for where to stay matter more here than in a gas-heated city.

Residents aged 65 or older are 18.2% of the population in Wilmington, close to the US share of 17.2% and 13.1% 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 Duke Energy whether it keeps a priority or medical-needs list, and register before the next storm rather than during it.

About the housing: 26.8% of the housing in Wilmington was built before 1970 (US 35.5%); 15.1% of homes are in buildings with 20 or more units (US 10.3%), where an outage also stops elevators and water pumps, which matters for upper floors and anyone who cannot use stairs; 52.4% of households rent (US 34.8%), so many residents depend on a landlord to restore building systems and cannot add a generator or battery themselves.

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

Backup power and electricity use in Wilmington

The average Duke Energy home used about 1,006 kWh a month in 2024 (US average 892 kWh), an average draw of 1.4 kW around the clock, and paid about 15.5 cents per kWh (14.1 in the state, 15.8 nationally), roughly $156 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 about 17.8 hours takes about 7.1 kWh. That is more than a portable battery holds, so a home battery system or a generator with a fuel supply for a day or two is the realistic option.

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 Wilmington

About 115,451 people live in Wilmington, the 8th largest of the 10 North Carolina cities on this site. Report the outage to the utility so a ticket exists for your address, then check Duke Energy’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.

Wilmington power outage map

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

Wilmington power outage questions