Power restored after 1,600 west Columbia residents went hours without power Sunday

UPDATE: Columbia Power and Light tweeted at 8:45 p.m. Sunday that "all power has been restored." The department urged anyone with remaining issues to call 573-875-2555.

Over 1,600 Columbia residents near the Columbia Mall lost power Sunday afternoon, with the outage continuing into the evening.

Columbia Water & Light reports the outage affects approximately 1,637 customers.

The incident was first reported at 2:52 p.m. Sunday.

As of 7:30 p.m., power was still out in the impacted areas, with the city reporting that crews were working to resolve the outage.

There was no estimated time listed online for the restoration of power.

"All available crews are working on it," Matt Nestor, public information specialist for City of Columbia Utilities, told the Tribune. "Two circuits are out."

No other information was immediately available, Nestor said.

Columbia/Boone County Public Health and Human Resources took to social media to share the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's advice on food safety for items in refrigerators or freezers of impacted homes.

"If the power is out for four hours, and a cooler and ice are available, put refrigerated perishable goods in the cooler," the health department wrote. "To keep them at 40 degrees or below, add ice or a cold source like frozen gel packs."

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The low temperature in Columbia on Sunday night is forecast at 27 degrees.

Jake Balke, father of a newborn, told the Tribune he and his wife had to throw away $200 worth of groceries and two weeks' worth of breastmilk due to the outage.

Balke called multiple numbers to reach the city for an update and was told that crews were out working on the issue, but with no timetable for resolution, he said.

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Balke said he was concerned about protecting his home, as the outage affected his security system. His wife and baby were leaving for his father's home, but he was staying overnight to watch over the house and be ready for work Monday, he said.

The Tribune's Chris Kwiecinski, Madeline Carter and Kevin Graeler contributed to this report.

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: West Columbia power outage: Over 1,600 residents without power Sunday