Jackson, Tennessee Power Outage Today

How reliable is Jackson Energy Authority service in Jackson?

Jackson Energy Authority is a city-owned utility with 38,314 customers. In 2024 its customers averaged 1.08 interruptions and 115 minutes (115 minutes) without power, so the average outage lasted 107 minutes.

Little of that came from major storms (about 0%). Without major event days the average is still 115 minutes, so the figure mostly reflects everyday faults: failed equipment, tree limbs, animals and vehicles hitting poles.

The typical outage was repaired in 107 minutes.

For comparison, Tennessee as a whole averaged 279 minutes and the United States 614 minutes. That puts Jackson Energy Authority below the state average, which is better.

Among the 52 utilities in Tennessee with at least 5,000 customers that report to the federal government, Jackson Energy Authority ranks 15th for the fewest outage minutes (1 is best). Nationally, 66% 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 Jackson

NOAA’s Storm Events Database lists 147 storm reports for Madison County from 2015 through 2026, most often thunderstorm wind (55), hail (52), flash flood (28), and tornado (7). The busiest full year was 2025 with 28 reports and the quietest was 2015 with 8, so the risk changes a lot from one year to the next.

Reports peak in March (33 since 2015), followed by April 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 8 storm episodes in Madison County since 2015, most often in February. 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 Jackson do to the grid:

• 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.
• 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.

Storm reports that name Jackson

Within Madison County, 45 NOAA storm reports since 2015 name Jackson as their location or in their description: hail (17), thunderstorm wind (12), flash flood (10), and tornado (4). That is about 31% of the county’s reports. Reports naming Jackson are most common in March. The busiest full year was 2016 with 7.

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

• May 20, 2018 (thunderstorm wind): “Trampoline blew over power lines at home in South Jackson.” Source: NOAA Storm Events Database
• November 18, 2016 (thunderstorm wind): “Fallen trees and limbs caused power lines to be down around Russell and Forest Avenues in Jackson.” Source: NOAA Storm Events Database

Who a power outage hits hardest in Jackson

50.4% of occupied homes in Jackson 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 16.2% of the population in Jackson, close to the US share of 17.2% and 17.4% 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 Jackson Energy Authority whether it keeps a priority or medical-needs list, and register before the next storm rather than during it.

About the housing: 29% of the housing in Jackson was built before 1970 (US 35.5%); 48.8% 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 Jackson is $53,032, below the Tennessee figure of $69,595. 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 Jackson

The average Jackson Energy Authority home used about 1,067 kWh a month in 2024 (US average 892 kWh), an average draw of 1.5 kW around the clock, and paid about 12.0 cents per kWh (12.4 in the state, 15.8 nationally), roughly $128 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 107 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 Jackson

About 68,949 people live in Jackson, the 9th largest of the 10 Tennessee cities on this site. Report the outage to the utility so a ticket exists for your address, then check Jackson Energy Authority’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.

Jackson power outage map

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

Jackson power outage questions