The storm that hit Casper and Natrona County has downed trees, limbs and dozens of power lines, resulting in power outages throughout the area. Just before noon Friday, Rocky Mountain Power was reporting outages to just under 14,000 customers.

"The severe weather has caused power outages in many parts of Wyoming," says Jeff Hymas, spokesperson for Rocky Mountain Power.  "The majority of the customers without power are in the Casper area.  Other areas in the state are also affected including Buffalo, Cody, Douglas, Edgerton, the Lander-Riverton area, Laramie, Midwest, Sinclair, Thermoplis, Worland, and others."

Crews have been working non-stop to restore electricity, but Hymas says that restoration could take a few days in some areas.  "We appreciate customers' patience as we work around the clock to restore power.  We have all hands on deck, as many as 70 employees and contractors from all different areas are all involved with the restoration efforts.  That being said, because of the thousands of downed trees and limbs, outage restoration could take several days in some areas."

Hymas goes on to say that crews are unable to access many alleys in the outage areas because of downed trees, but tree crews are clearing those areas as quickly as possible.

Hymas does caution people not to remove downed trees and limbs themselves, when a downed power line is involved.  Further, don't go near or touch downed power lines and take care to ensure children and pets avoid downed lines as well.

The heavy, wet snow and strong winds have hindered repair operations, and more snow, along with winds in excess of 40 miles per hour are expected before nightfall.

More From K2 Radio