About 19-hundred Swepco customers in Bossier Parish are without electricity this morning. A transformer at the Linton Road sub-station caught fire early this morning. Repair crews are working to get the power back on as quickly as possible but Swepco's Scott McCloud says it will probably be at least midnight.
In the meantime, the Red Cross has opened a cooling center at Legacy Elementary School on Swan Lake Road. First Baptist Church in Benton has opened its fellowship hall for the same purpose. That's on Bellevue Street in Benton. The Bossier Sheriff's Office says anybody who's without power or air conditioning can go to one of these centers to get relief from the extreme temperatures.

Because of the high temperatures and increasing demand on the system, Swepco is asking its customers to voluntarily conserve electricity today.  They're being asked to avoid using unnecessary lighting or electric appliances and to limit the use of air conditioning -- especiall between 1:00 and 7:00 p.m, when demand is the highest.

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