When will the power be back in Ames, IA?
| Utility information | Our restoration forecast |
|---|---|
| Official ETA, when the utility posts one | Independent estimated return window when trend data allows — often available first |
| Utility-reported status & customer counts | Confidence range + whether the outage is growing, stable, or restoring |
How the forecast works: we analyze how quickly customers are being restored, whether the outage is still growing, current weather, outage size, and similar past outages in this area. Every completed forecast is compared with when power actually returned. As of Aug 26, 9,590 completed outages have been graded this way — median error 1.8 hours across the most recent 600 of them (about 3.1 days), and we publish the misses. See the full record (how it works). Independent and unofficial: never the utility's commitment.
Track current power outages in Ames, Iowa — customers reported out, restoration progress, active weather alerts, and an independent restoration estimate. Ames is a city in Story County; when the serving utility's public feed reports Ames directly, this page shows the city's own outage count and restoration time, with the county-wide view as context.
Ames is a city of about 69,026 residents in Story County.
None of the utility outage maps we follow has yet listed an outage for Ames by name, so this page reports the Story County county-wide view, which covers Ames. If a serving utility does name Ames during an outage, the city's own numbers appear here automatically.
ZIP codes in Ames: 50010 · 50011 · 50012 · 50013 · 50014 Checking a ZIP goes straight to the address-level view for that area.
Around Ames: the closest other places we track are Boone, about 13 miles to the west; Ankeny, about 20 miles to the south; Johnston, about 24 miles to the south; Grimes, about 26 miles to the south. Also nearby: Altoona (27 mi S), Urbandale (28 mi S), Clive (30 mi S), Pleasant Hill (31 mi S), Des Moines (31 mi S), Waukee (33 mi SW), West Des Moines (34 mi S), Marshalltown (37 mi E). Looking further out, the nearest place we track is: north toward Albert Lea, MN (113 mi); northeast toward La Crosse, WI (174 mi); east toward Cedar Rapids (100 mi); southeast toward Newton (38 mi); south toward Norwalk (37 mi); southwest toward Maryville, MO (133 mi); west toward Sioux City (145 mi); northwest toward Fort Dodge (44 mi).
Who serves Ames?
We track live outage data from Midland Power Coop in Story County — but several utilities can serve one county, so confirm your own by searching your address on the live map. See the forecast panel above for how the estimate works — its inputs, its independence from the utility, and how every completed forecast is scored against what actually happened. Outages below 5 customers are too small for a meaningful area-wide estimate — the page says so instead of guessing.
Common questions
When will my power be back on in Ames, IA?
It depends on the cause and how many crews are working. When's the Power Back? combines the live outage count, the current restoration rate, weather, and local history into an independent estimate for the Ames area — shown even before your utility posts an official restoration time. Check the live power outage status at the top of this page.
How do I check the power outage status in Ames, IA?
This page is a live power outage status check for the Ames area: current customers out, the affected areas on the map, and an independent restoration forecast when enough trend data is available, refreshed about every 15 minutes from utilities' own outage maps and the federal government's county outage data. To narrow it to your own street, search a Ames ZIP code — 50010, 50011, 50012, 50013, 50014 — and the map opens on that area. Your utility's own outage map remains the official word for your account.
How do I report a power outage in Ames, IA?
Report it to your electric utility — crews are dispatched from customer reports. Utilities tracked in Story County include Midland Power Coop; confirm your own provider, then use its outage line or website. Reporting a downed line helps crews find the fault faster. In a life-threatening emergency, call 911.
Does this page show Ames specifically, or the whole county?
Right now, the Story County county-wide view, which covers Ames. No utility outage map we follow has yet listed an outage for Ames by name; utilities here have so far reported only county-wide totals, or used area names we cannot match to Ames. If that changes during an outage, the city's own count and restoration time appear here automatically. Boone (13 mi W) is the closest place we track separately.
How accurate is the restoration estimate?
Every estimate is later graded against when the tracked outage was substantially restored (~90% of customers back), and the track record is published on our accuracy page. Estimates firm up a few hours into an outage once a steady restoration trend appears; very small outages are marked "too small to estimate" rather than guessed.
