Cleveland, Ohio Power Outage Today

How reliable is power in Cleveland?

The Illuminating Company (FirstEnergy)

The Illuminating Company (FirstEnergy) is an investor-owned utility with 744,898 customers. In 2024 its customers averaged 1.78 interruptions and 1,918 minutes (about 32 hours) without power, so the average outage lasted about 17.9 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 150 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 The Illuminating Company (FirstEnergy) customers, they stayed out for about 17.9 hours on average, which is long enough to spoil refrigerated food and strain medical needs.

For comparison, Ohio as a whole averaged 510 minutes and the United States 614 minutes. That puts The Illuminating Company (FirstEnergy) above the state average.

Among the 30 utilities in Ohio with at least 5,000 customers that report to the federal government, The Illuminating Company (FirstEnergy) ranks 29th for the fewest outage minutes (1 is best). Nationally, 5% of the 926 utilities of that size reported more outage minutes in 2024.

Cleveland Public Power

Cleveland Public Power is a city-owned utility with 73,666 customers. In 2024 its customers averaged 1.08 interruptions and 170 minutes (about 2.8 hours) without power, so the average outage lasted about 2.6 hours.

Little of that came from major storms (about 0%). Without major event days the average is still 170 minutes, so the figure mostly reflects everyday faults: failed equipment, tree limbs, animals and vehicles hitting poles.

The typical outage was repaired in about 2.6 hours.

For comparison, Ohio as a whole averaged 510 minutes and the United States 614 minutes. That puts Cleveland Public Power 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, Cleveland Public Power ranks 14th for the fewest outage minutes (1 is best). Nationally, 53% 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 Cleveland

NOAA’s Storm Events Database lists 356 storm reports for Cuyahoga County from 2015 through 2026, most often thunderstorm wind (227), hail (65), flash flood (48), and flood (10). The busiest full year was 2020 with 56 reports and the quietest was 2016 with 8, so the risk changes a lot from one year to the next.

Reports peak in August (83 since 2015), followed by July 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 27 storm episodes in Cuyahoga County since 2015, most often in November. 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 Cleveland 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.
• 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.
• 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.

Storm reports that name Cleveland

Within Cuyahoga County, 74 NOAA storm reports since 2015 name Cleveland as their location or in their description: thunderstorm wind (49), flash flood (15), hail (5), and flood (3). That is about 21% of the county’s reports. Reports naming Cleveland are most common in August. The busiest full year was 2020 with 16.

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

• June 21, 2021 (thunderstorm wind): “Large tree branch and power lines down on Wichita Avenue in Cleveland.” Source: NOAA Storm Events Database
• June 23, 2015 (thunderstorm wind): “The media also reported 25,000 residents within the metropolitan Cleveland area lost power.” Source: NOAA Storm Events Database

Who a power outage hits hardest in Cleveland

77.9% of occupied homes in Cleveland are heated with piped natural gas, and 18.9% 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 15.2% of the population in Cleveland, close to the US share of 17.2% and 20.2% 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 The Illuminating Company (FirstEnergy) whether it keeps a priority or medical-needs list, and register before the next storm rather than during it.

About the housing: 79.4% of the housing in Cleveland 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; 17.6% 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; 58.3% 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 Cleveland is $40,801, 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 Cleveland

The average The Illuminating Company (FirstEnergy) home used about 616 kWh a month in 2024 (US average 892 kWh), an average draw of 0.8 kW around the clock, and paid about 16.8 cents per kWh (16.5 in the state, 15.8 nationally), roughly $103 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 17.9 hours takes about 7.2 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 Cleveland

About 383,793 people live in Cleveland, the 2nd largest of the 10 Ohio cities on this site. Report the outage to the utility so a ticket exists for your address, then check The Illuminating Company (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.

Cleveland power outage map

The Illuminating Company (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.

Cleveland power outage questions