Northland neighborhood plagued by power outages point to overgrown trees near utility lines

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) - People living in one Northland neighborhood claim the area keeps experiencing power outages and overgrown trees near power lines are mostly to blame.

Whether it’s a blizzard, extreme winds or a thunderstorm, when severe weather moves through Kansas City, Peggy Morrow tends to be on edge.

“It’s frustrating because it’s preventable,” she said.

Morrow, who has lived in her home on North Hickory Street for 16 years, told KCTV5 anchor Zac Summers that, over the past year, she and her neighbors have lost power at least four times.

“We’re missing work, we’re losing food. It’s uncomfortable for us. Evergy is our only choice and there’s no sense of urgency.”

The most recent outage was on March 5. Morrow said a tree limb in a neighbor’s yard broke during a blizzard and severed one of Evergy’s power lines, leaving neighbors without power for more than 12 hours.

“We can’t get Evergy to come maintain the lines,” she said. “My concern is when you look at the high-power line, they’re across the entire tree. It’s a safety hazard.”

Morrow noted many of the trees in her neighborhood are just inches away from the company’s lines. She’s called to complain several times, but she said there’s little to no action.

“What I was told was there has to be an outage or actual contact with the tree, where’s it creating a fire or sparking, in order for them to come out to do anything about it,” she recalled. “So, essentially there has to be an event to get them out here.”

Kenny Thomas lives down the street from Morrow. He’s been in the neighborhood since 1983.

“The newer neighborhoods, [the power lines] are underground. This one, they aren’t,” Thomas said pointing to the row of power lines that line their backyards. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen [Evergy] trim these trees as a regular, preventive measure since they took over from KCP&L.”

Thomas feels like the trees near power lines have been neglected. He said he would like for Evergy to be more proactive rather than reactive.

“If they could try to do preventative maintenance like you would on a car, anything, if they would take care of it, we probably wouldn’t be having problems like this,” Thomas added.

In late March, Evergy sent an email to customers with the subject line “Working to reduce outages.” The company noted that it works “year-round to keep tree limbs away from power lines.”

KCTV5 wanted to see those efforts in action. We asked Evergy for an on-camera interview and locations in the metro where crews were actively trimming trees. We gave the company weeks to make it happen, but a spokesperson ultimately declined our request. She instead sent the following response:

So, what options do you – the customer – have when you’re not really getting answers from your utility company? We found the Missouri Public Service Commission. The state agency is responsible for regulating utilities, and ensuring safe and reliable services, as well as reasonable rates.

“The Commission has a consumer staff,” said Forrest Gossett, chief public information officer for the commission. “You can imagine the consumer issues run the gamut from billing issues to what you just discussed.”

Gossett said if you have a complaint, it’s best to contact your utility company first. If you feel like your concerns aren’t being addressed, file a complaint with your state’s utility commission.

“Our goal is to really get the consumer and the utility talking to each other, and we want to help resolve complaints,” said Gossett.

It’s a move Morrow is now considering.

“I understand storms happen,” said Morrow. “I get that, and there are things that are out of their control, but this they can control.”

They are outages Morrow and Thomas agree are avoidable. Yet, an experience they sadly believe is not unique to their Northland neighborhood.

“I know we’re not alone,” Morrow said. “It’s a simple fix. We’re paying for it.”

“At least trim off stuff that’s touching lines,” Thomas added.

Evergy’s spokesperson later told KCTV5 that a professional arborist inspected the trees and power lines after Morrow called in March and determined that immediate trimming was not necessary. She added that its vegetation management team plans to take another look at the lines.

The company offers the following tree trimming guidelines on its website:

Evergy also advises customers, who see a potential issue with vegetation on the lines that run from pole to pole near your house, to call 888-471-5275.

To submit a complaint against a utility company in Missouri, click here.

To file a complaint against a utility company in Kansas, click here.

For KCTV5 Special Reports, click here.

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