Eugene, Oregon Power Outage Today

How reliable is Eugene Water & Electric Board (EWEB) service in Eugene?

Eugene Water & Electric Board (EWEB) is a city-owned utility with 102,048 customers. In 2024 its customers averaged 0.34 interruptions and 65 minutes (65 minutes) without power, so the average outage lasted about 3.2 hours.

Little of that came from major storms (about 0%). Without major event days the average is still 65 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 about 3.2 hours on average.

For comparison, Oregon as a whole averaged 591 minutes and the United States 614 minutes. That puts Eugene Water & Electric Board (EWEB) below the state average, which is better.

Among the 17 utilities in Oregon with at least 5,000 customers that report to the federal government, Eugene Water & Electric Board (EWEB) ranks 6th for the fewest outage minutes (1 is best). Nationally, 79% 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 Eugene

NOAA’s Storm Events Database lists 41 storm reports for Lane County from 2015 through 2025, most often flood (19), thunderstorm wind (6), funnel cloud (4), and debris flow (4). The busiest full year was 2019 with 7 reports and the quietest was 2022 with 1, so the risk changes a lot from one year to the next.

Reports peak in April (9 since 2015), followed by March and December. 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 7 storm episodes in Lane 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 Eugene 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.
• 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.
• 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 Eugene

Within Lane County, 8 NOAA storm reports since 2015 name Eugene as their location or in their description: thunderstorm wind (3), flood (2), tornado (1), and heavy rain (1). That is about 20% of the county’s reports.

Who a power outage hits hardest in Eugene

75.3% of occupied homes in Eugene 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 17.8% of the population in Eugene, close to the US share of 17.2% and 15.4% 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 Eugene Water & Electric Board (EWEB) whether it keeps a priority or medical-needs list, and register before the next storm rather than during it.

About the housing: 31.3% of the housing in Eugene was built before 1970 (US 35.5%); 15.4% 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; 52.1% 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 Eugene

The average Eugene Water & Electric Board (EWEB) home used about 881 kWh a month in 2024 (US average 892 kWh), an average draw of 1.2 kW around the clock, and paid about 13.1 cents per kWh (14.7 in the state, 15.8 nationally), roughly $115 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 3.2 hours takes about 1.3 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 Eugene

About 176,654 people live in Eugene, the 2nd largest of the 5 Oregon cities on this site. Report the outage to the utility so a ticket exists for your address, then check Eugene Water & Electric Board (EWEB)’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.

Eugene power outage map

Eugene Water & Electric Board (EWEB)’s outage map has the official restoration estimate for your address; the count above comes from residents. Food and generator safety: power outage guide.

Eugene power outage questions