When will the power be back in Ottumwa, 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 Sep 3, 11,215 completed outages have been graded this way — typical (median) error 1.7 hours across the most recent 600 of them (about 2.8 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 Ottumwa, Iowa — customers reported out, restoration progress, active weather alerts, and an independent restoration estimate. Ottumwa is a city in Wapello County; when the serving utility's own outage map reports Ottumwa directly, this page shows the city's own outage count and restoration time, with the county-wide view as context.
Ottumwa is a city of about 25,648 residents in Wapello County.
None of the utility outage maps we follow has yet listed an outage for Ottumwa by name, so this page reports the Wapello County county-wide view, which covers Ottumwa. If a serving utility does name Ottumwa during an outage, the city's own numbers appear here automatically.
ZIP codes in Ottumwa: 52501 Checking a ZIP goes straight to the address-level view for that area.
Around Ottumwa: the closest other places we track are Oskaloosa, about 22 miles to the northwest; Pella, about 37 miles to the northwest; Newton, about 57 miles to the northwest; Kirksville, MO, about 57 miles to the south. Also nearby: Coralville (63 mi NE), Iowa City (64 mi NE), Indianola (64 mi W), North Liberty (65 mi NE), Pleasant Hill (68 mi NW), Burlington (69 mi E), Altoona (70 mi NW), Des Moines (73 mi NW). Looking further out, the nearest place we track is: north toward Marshalltown (75 mi); northeast toward Cedar Rapids (76 mi); east toward Muscatine (75 mi); southeast toward Quincy, IL (93 mi); south toward Moberly, MO (111 mi); southwest toward Excelsior Springs, MO (151 mi); west toward Maryville, MO (137 mi); northwest toward Norwalk (74 mi).
Who serves Ottumwa?
We track live outage data from MidAmerican Energy in Wapello 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 Ottumwa, 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 Ottumwa 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 Ottumwa, IA?
This page is a live power outage status check for the Ottumwa 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 Ottumwa ZIP code — 52501 — 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 Ottumwa, IA?
Report it to your electric utility — crews are dispatched from customer reports. Utilities tracked in Wapello County include MidAmerican Energy; 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 Ottumwa specifically, or the whole county?
Right now, the Wapello County county-wide view, which covers Ottumwa. No utility outage map we follow has yet listed an outage for Ottumwa by name; utilities here have so far reported only county-wide totals, or used area names we cannot match to Ottumwa. If that changes during an outage, the city's own count and restoration time appear here automatically. Oskaloosa (22 mi NW) 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.
