Memphis, Tennessee Power Outage Today

How reliable is Memphis Light, Gas and Water (MLGW) service in Memphis?

Memphis Light, Gas and Water (MLGW) is a city-owned utility with 427,658 customers. In 2024 its customers averaged 1.95 interruptions and 327 minutes (about 5.5 hours) without power, so the average outage lasted about 2.8 hours.

Little of that came from major storms (about 14%). Without major event days the average is still 281 minutes, so the figure mostly reflects everyday faults: failed equipment, tree limbs, animals and vehicles hitting poles.

The typical outage was repaired in about 2.8 hours.

For comparison, Tennessee as a whole averaged 279 minutes and the United States 614 minutes. That puts Memphis Light, Gas and Water (MLGW) above the state average.

Among the 52 utilities in Tennessee with at least 5,000 customers that report to the federal government, Memphis Light, Gas and Water (MLGW) ranks 32nd for the fewest outage minutes (1 is best). Nationally, 32% 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 Memphis

NOAA’s Storm Events Database lists 379 storm reports for Shelby County from 2015 through 2026, most often thunderstorm wind (198), flash flood (91), hail (71), and flood (8). The busiest full year was 2023 with 80 reports and the quietest was 2022 with 15, so the risk changes a lot from one year to the next.

Reports peak in June (74 since 2015), followed by July and April. 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 13 storm episodes in Shelby 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 Memphis 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 Memphis

Within Shelby County, 77 NOAA storm reports since 2015 name Memphis as their location or in their description: thunderstorm wind (39), flash flood (27), hail (7), and lightning (2). That is about 20% of the county’s reports. Reports naming Memphis are most common in June. The busiest full year was 2017 with 14. These reports record 3 deaths and 2 injuries in total.

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

• July 14, 2015 (thunderstorm wind): “Straight line winds knocked down many trees and power lines across Memphis.” Source: NOAA Storm Events Database

Who a power outage hits hardest in Memphis

56.3% of occupied homes in Memphis 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 14.4% of the population in Memphis, close to the US share of 17.2% and 13.7% 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 Memphis Light, Gas and Water (MLGW) whether it keeps a priority or medical-needs list, and register before the next storm rather than during it.

About the housing: 50.2% of the housing in Memphis 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; 55.1% 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.

Median household income in Memphis is $51,736, 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 Memphis

The average Memphis Light, Gas and Water (MLGW) home used about 1,139 kWh a month in 2024 (US average 892 kWh), an average draw of 1.6 kW around the clock, and paid about 12.2 cents per kWh (12.4 in the state, 15.8 nationally), roughly $138 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 2.8 hours takes about 1.1 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 Memphis

About 651,073 people live in Memphis, the 2nd largest of the 10 Tennessee cities on this site. Report the outage to the utility so a ticket exists for your address, then check Memphis Light, Gas and Water (MLGW)’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.

Memphis power outage map

Memphis Light, Gas and Water (MLGW)’s outage map has the official restoration estimate for your address; the count above comes from residents. Food and generator safety: power outage guide.

Memphis power outage questions