RED SPRINGS — Almost four out of five Robeson County customers of Lumbee Electric Membership Corporation are without power as what is now Tropical Storm Florence continues its rain and wind, and about 58 percent of the utility’s customers over the four county region it serves, which includes Hoke, Scotland and Cumberland counties, are also in the dark.

According to information posted on Facebook by a member of the LREMC board, 16,788 of 21,253 customers in Robeson are without power, a percentage of just under 78 percent.

That is the higher percentage among the four counties, with Scotland next at about 68 percent, Hoke 64 percent and Cumberland 24 percent.

Below is the message of the day that will play today when members call in. We found that when members called in yesterday and listened to the message of the day that they would not continue the process to speak to a MSR since they were getting info needed.

An internal memo from the utility read as follows: “Lumbee River EMC’s crews are assessing the damage to our system. Additional crews are here to assist us in our restoration efforts. Restoration will take some time due to the continuing winds, rain and flooding conditions in our service area but our goal is to restore service as safely and as quickly as possible.”

Staff report