Ameren Illinois Crews Work Through Night To Restore Power

MADISON AND ST. CLAIR COUNTIES — A severe storm that swept through Madison and St. Clair counties on Tuesday afternoon, Aug. 12, 2025, left nearly 10,800 Ameren Illinois customers without power, with outages peaking around 3:30 p.m. in communities including East Alton, Wood River, Granite City, and a portion of St. Clair County. Ameren Illinois crews worked feverishly from the very start and by 4:45 p.m. on Tuesday, had rerouted power to nearly all affected customers in St. Clair County, reducing outages there from 2,868 to just 26.

The utility was able to isolate the problem and control the affected lines, allowing many residents to regain electricity within a few hours.

The storm, characterized by intense lightning and thunder, began impacting the area around 2 p.m. Tuesday, initially causing outages in Wood River and East Alton. East Alton experienced the most significant impact, with roughly 4,000 out along Old St. Louis Road. Wood River and nearby areas reported outages affecting approximately 2,000 customers, while smaller numbers were affected in Pontoon Beach and Granite City.

“Our crews worked safely well into early Wednesday morning, Aug. 13, 2025, to restore power for customers in Madison and St. Clair counties,” said Langston Rose, director of electric operations for Ameren Illinois. “Working in the dark adds another layer of complexity when it comes to restoration work, but our crews and support personnel did an excellent job.”

According to Brian Bretsch, a spokesperson for Ameren Illinois, the utility’s headquarters in Collinsville closely monitored the storm as it moved through the region, then crews were dispatched to the appropriate places.

“We did have quite a storm roll through with thunder and lightning,” Bretsch said.

While the storm produced significant lightning, it was unclear whether wind contributed to the outages.

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