Akron, Ohio Power Outage Today

How reliable is Ohio Edison (FirstEnergy) service in Akron?

Ohio Edison (FirstEnergy) is an investor-owned utility with 1,067,091 customers. In 2024 its customers averaged 1.28 interruptions and 234 minutes (about 3.9 hours) without power, so the average outage lasted about 3.1 hours.

Major event days, the severe-weather days that utilities report separately, made up about 51% of that time. Without them the average is 114 minutes, so weather matters here but ordinary equipment faults and tree contact account for most of the total.

The typical outage was repaired in about 3.1 hours.

For comparison, Ohio as a whole averaged 510 minutes and the United States 614 minutes. That puts Ohio Edison (FirstEnergy) below the state average, which is better.

Among the 30 utilities in Ohio with at least 5,000 customers that report to the federal government, Ohio Edison (FirstEnergy) ranks 17th for the fewest outage minutes (1 is best). Nationally, 43% 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 Akron

NOAA’s Storm Events Database lists 211 storm reports for Summit County from 2015 through 2026, most often thunderstorm wind (139), hail (46), flash flood (18), and tornado (5). The busiest full year was 2019 with 40 reports and the quietest was 2018 with 6, so the risk changes a lot from one year to the next.

Reports peak in August (53 since 2015), followed by June 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 15 storm episodes in Summit County since 2015, most often in December. 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 Akron 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.
• Hail. Hail rarely cuts power by itself, but it often arrives with the wind and lightning that do, and it breaks solar panels, windshields and exposed utility equipment.
• 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 Akron

Within Summit County, 40 NOAA storm reports since 2015 name Akron as their location or in their description: thunderstorm wind (29), hail (7), and flash flood (4). That is about 19% of the county’s reports. Reports naming Akron are most common in August. The busiest full year was 2020 with 9. These reports record 1 death in total.

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

• September 10, 2016 (thunderstorm wind): “Thunderstorm winds downed trees and limbs in the Akron and Stow areas resulting in scattered power outages.” Source: NOAA Storm Events Database
• June 16, 2016 (thunderstorm wind): “Thunderstorm winds downed several trees and power lines in the Firestone Park area of Akron.” Source: NOAA Storm Events Database

Who a power outage hits hardest in Akron

79.4% of occupied homes in Akron are heated with piped natural gas, and 17% with electricity (US 41.3% electric). A gas furnace still needs electricity for its blower and ignition, so a long winter outage leaves these homes cold too, though a gas supply stays on when the grid fails. Never heat a home with an oven, grill or camp stove indoors.

Residents aged 65 or older are 16% of the population in Akron, close to the US share of 17.2% and 17.3% 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 Ohio Edison (FirstEnergy) whether it keeps a priority or medical-needs list, and register before the next storm rather than during it.

About the housing: 73% of the housing in Akron was built before 1970 (US 35.5%), and older neighborhoods often have overhead service lines and mature trees close to the wires, which makes them more exposed to storm outages; 49.3% 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.

Median household income in Akron is $48,076, below the Ohio figure of $71,389. For many households, replacing a freezer of spoiled food or paying for a hotel during a long outage is a real hardship; dialing 211 connects to local shelters, warming or cooling centers and utility assistance programs.

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

Backup power and electricity use in Akron

The average Ohio Edison (FirstEnergy) home used about 786 kWh a month in 2024 (US average 892 kWh), an average draw of 1.1 kW around the clock, and paid about 16.2 cents per kWh (16.5 in the state, 15.8 nationally), roughly $127 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 3.1 hours takes about 1.2 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 Akron

About 197,597 people live in Akron, the 5th largest of the 10 Ohio cities on this site. Report the outage to the utility so a ticket exists for your address, then check Ohio Edison (FirstEnergy)’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.

Akron power outage map

Ohio Edison (FirstEnergy)’s outage map has the official restoration estimate for your address; the count above comes from residents. Food and generator safety: power outage guide.

Akron power outage questions