OSAGE COUNTY — A widespread Independence Day weekend storm left thousands of Missourians without power, including communities throughout Osage County, as utility companies worked around the clock to repair extensive damage to poles, power lines, and other equipment.

The outage was part of widespread damage across Illinois and Missouri. Three Rivers Electric Cooperative reported that more than 30,000 cooperative members statewide lost power following the storms, while Ameren Missouri said it restored power to more than 57,000 customers, but continued repairing significant damage across its service territory. Outages affected communities across Osage County, with restoration times varying widely. Osage County was reportedly ranked second for total power outages and second for percentage of customers affected among all 115 counties in Missouri.

As of 8 p.m. on Monday, 735 of 11,469 customers were still without power in Osage county, including 690 through Ameren Missouri, and 45 through Three Rivers Electric Cooperative.

At Chamois, where power was out for nearly 29 hours, the response illustrated how local officials, emergency responders, businesses, churches, and residents adapted as utilities worked to restore service.

Power went out at approximately 3:11 p.m. on Saturday, July 4, affecting about 270 Ameren Missouri customers in the Chamois area. Electricity was restored at approximately 7:50 p.m. on Sunday, July 5.

The first offer of a cooling station came Sunday morning from Kenny Hackmann in nearby Morrison. After seeing some Chamois residents at St. James United Church of Christ’s annual dinner and ice cream social Saturday evening following the outage, Hackmann agreed to keep both the church and its Sunday school building open on Sunday as cooling and charging centers. He also provided bottled water and soda free of charge.

Because the Chamois Community Center is served by Three Rivers Electric Cooperative rather than Ameren Missouri, it was unaffected by the outage and became the city’s primary cooling and charging center, after being opened by Lana and Dale Hackmann. At Mayor Shawn Mitchem’s request, Hoffman issued a Smart911 emergency notification directing residents needing relief from the heat to the community center and advising anyone requiring medical assistance or transportation to call 911.

Mitchem worked from the community center throughout the day, using it as a base between checking on residents, coordinating with emergency responders, making and returning phone calls, dealing with infrastructure, and securing food, ice, and bottled water. One of Mitchem’s first concerns was for residents who depended on oxygen or other electrically-powered medical equipment. He personally checked on those residents while Chamois Fire Protection District Chief Sean Hackmann coordinated resources with Osage County 911/Emergency Management Director Ron Hoffman and Osage Ambulance District EMS Chief Josh Krull in the event additional assistance was needed. Through Chief Hackmann, both Hoffman and Krull extended multiple offers of support throughout the day.

Former Mayor Elise Brochu staffed the community center throughout the day on Sunday, welcoming residents and helping coordinate activities while Mitchem was in the field. Approximately 35 to 40 people came through the community center during the day, with many stopping by multiple times to cool off, charge phones, and other electronic devices, receive updates, or simply visit with neighbors.

As the response continued, local businesses helped meet immediate needs.

Jerry’s Stop & Go supplied ice and bottled water for the community center, while Mitchem distributed corn dogs from his personal freezer and remaining soda that had previously been donated for the city’s tee-ball and softball programs.

Despite periods of heavy rain, Sweet Bee’s Shaved Ice served more than 120 hot dogs under the Chamois City Park bandstand on a donation basis before running out of food, providing another place for residents to gather while waiting for power to be restored.

City officials also worked to prepare for the possibility of a prolonged outage. With the city’s wells unable to replenish the water tower without electricity, residents were asked to conserve water while city officials worked to restore the backup generator.

Aldermen Jay Bathke and Dylan Barnes, and City Clerk Meghan Birmingham, with information provided by former Chamois Water and Sewer Operator Danny Kirsch, worked to get the city’s emergency generator operating after discovering it had not been maintained during the previous administration.

Additional offers of assistance continued throughout the day. Father David Means of Most Pure Heart of Mary Catholic Church stopped by the community center to ask what assistance the church could provide, despite the church itself being without electricity. Osage Ambulance District Battalion Chief and Paramedic Tony Frazier, the district’s on-duty supervisor, visited the Chamois Community Center Sunday evening after making rounds in the Chamois, Bonnots Mill, and Osage Delta areas. Pastor Matt Lee from Linn First offered water if the outage extended into Monday. Mike Nolting of Jerry’s Stop &Go offered food as well.

“I’m just really proud of how the community banded together,” Mitchem said.

Chamois was just one of several Osage County communities affected by the storm. Elsewhere in the county.

Osage County 911/EMA Director Ron Hoffman said that although no buildings were destroyed, he said trees damaged homes, vehicles, boats, and outbuildings while sheet metal was peeled from several roofs. National Weather Service investigators later estimated winds reached approximately 105 MPH and found no evidence of tornadic rotation.

“The National Weather Service said it was straight-line winds,” Hoffman said. “They couldn’t find anything that was twisted.”

Hoffman spent much of the weekend coordinating damage assessments, road closures, utility restoration and resource requests while gathering reports from emergency responders and residents. He said a Facebook request for damage information generated approximately 89 responses, helping emergency management build a broad picture of conditions throughout the county.

Road crews, firefighters and utility workers faced numerous blocked roadways, but Hoffman said local residents played an equally important role in the recovery effort.

“We started clearing roads, but there were a lot of civilians out there,” he said. “They were wonderful. They were working appropriately, they had the right equipment, and one guy actually flipped a tree backwards off the power lines. They weren’t crazy people doing crazy things; they were helping the right way.”

Among Hoffman’s concerns was the extended outage at Westphalia Hills, where emergency generators continued powering life-safety equipment but not the facility’s air conditioning. Hoffman worked with the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) to secure portable exterior air-conditioning units while staff members cared for residents during the prolonged outage.

“They care about those residents like they’re their own family,” Hoffman said. “They’d done everything they could.”

Hoffman also praised cooperation throughout the county. Union Pacific slowed train traffic so Ameren Missouri crews could access damaged lines, State Tech agreed to keep the Klebba Activity Center available as a cooling center if needed, and community organizations opened additional facilities to residents seeking relief from the heat.

Linn suffered a power loss on Saturday afternoon, which was restored mid-morning on Sunday, while other nearby communities were hit hard. Westphalia was still without power as of Monday evening.

Though Meta did not lose power, fences and the batting cage at the ballfield were damaged, and downed trees created significant property damage at Loose Creek and Bonnots Mill, where power was still off through Monday evening.

Osage County Sheriff Mike Bonham said cooperation between emergency agencies allowed first responders to overcome roads blocked by hundreds of fallen trees as they answered storm-related calls throughout the county.

One of the most significant incidents occurred near Bonnots Mill, where seven people became stranded along the river following the storm. Bonham said Jefferson City Fire Department reached the scene before Osage County crews because fallen trees blocked every practical route into the area.

“We started toward Bonnots Mill, and there was no way to get there,” Bonham said. “There were trees across Highway A before you ever got there, and there was no way to get in from the Osage City side either.”

Recognizing the situation, Bonham coordinated with Cole County officials, allowing deputies to enter from the opposite side while Osage County crews continued working toward the area.

“They had the manpower and the resources to go ahead and take care of everything on that side, and I gave them the okay because we could use the help,” Bonham said.

By the time Osage County’s rescue boats reached the area, Jefferson City firefighters had already completed the rescue.

“They must have been sitting there hooked up and ready to go,” Bonham said with a laugh. “By the time I made it to Bonnots Mill, Jeff City Fire was already headed back.”

The sheriff said years of joint training among agencies paid dividends during the response. His office regularly trains with Osage Fire Protection District, Chamois firefighters and neighboring agencies on water rescue operations, allowing personnel to operate one another’s equipment when necessary.

“We had a lot of support with mutual aid,” Bonham said. “We train together, we know each other’s equipment, and if they need to get on ours they can do it. If I need to get on theirs, I can do it. We’ll give each other a hard time, but we’ve got mutual respect. We want to thank all of the first responders who answered the call, including the Missouri State Highway Patrol, U.S. Fish and Wildlife, Missouri Department of Conservation, the Jefferson City Fire Department, local fire agencies, and EMS.”

Bonham also credited residents for immediately helping neighbors clear roads and begin cleanup efforts before many emergency crews could even reach damaged areas.

“Almost immediately, citizens were already cleaning up and burning brush,” he said. “By Sunday they had Bobcats and equipment out there working. That’s just the kind of community we have.”

The sheriff noted that his office had already been participating in Operation Dry Water on the Missouri River when forecasters predicted severe weather. Deputies pulled their boats from the water shortly before the storm intensified, never anticipating winds would ultimately exceeded 100 MPH in portions of the county.

Looking back on the response, Bonham said the event demonstrated how far Osage County’s emergency response network has progressed. “We had a lot of support with mutual aid and how well we all work together,” Bonham said. “When something like this happens, everybody comes to help. We know each other’s equipment, we train together, and that’s exactly how it’s supposed to work.”

Bonham warned motorists to continue using caution as many areas were flooded. “Never drive through flooded roadways, watch for downed power lines, and allow emergency crews the space they need to continue cleanup efforts,” he said.

When the storms first struck Saturday afternoon, one Osage Ambulance District ambulance was already in Jefferson City assisting with Fourth of July festivities because of the large crowds expected for the evening concert.

Krull said ambulance crews conducted area checks Saturday and Sunday while remaining available to transport residents to cooling centers or provide medical care if needed.

Throughout the outage, Ameren crews worked to restore service while city officials, emergency responders, businesses, churches, civic organizations, and residents continued checking on one another and sharing information through phone calls, text messages, Facebook, Smart911, and verbal conversations.

Three Rivers Electric Cooperative (TREC) maintained updates via Facebook throughout the storm, noting that Crews from Intercounty Electric Cooperative and Laclede Electric Cooperative arrived to assist with restoration efforts on Monday.

“We’re incredibly thankful for their support and for the teamwork between electric cooperatives,” said TREC Spokesperson Taylor Wankum. “Their help allows us to continue restoring power to members as safely and efficiently as possible.”

A portion of Owensville lost power for just over an hour on Saturday afternoon. No major damage was reported in town, according to Owensville Fire Protection District Chief Jeff Arnold.