Update on power outages

As of 5 p.m, 16,665 St. Mary Parish Cleco customers were without power. That's almost 88 percent of St. Mary customers.

Another 7,140 customers of Cleco, Entergy and SLEMCO were without power in St. Martin. That's 30 percent of the customers there.

And in Assumption, 6,889 customers were without power, or about 66 percent.

Efforts to restore power on a large scale will depend on when crews can safely get out in the weather generated by Tropical Storm Barry.

In the meantime, assume any downed line is energized, and don't drive over downed lines in the road.

Be careful with candles and generators. Generators should not be used indoors or in enclosed spaces where exhaust can accumulate.