Dawson CountyPower Outage History
What this grade means
Top 20% most reliable nationally — infrequent, short outages. This county ranks in the most reliable fifth of all US counties in our dataset, based on 12 years of real DOE outage records: outages happen less often here, and when they do occur they tend to be resolved quickly compared to the rest of the country. Baseline outage risk is low, though a severe local storm can still occasionally cause a longer-than-usual outage regardless of the long-term track record.
Outages by year
Outages by month (seasonality)
Worst outage events on record
| Date | Duration | Customers affected | Cause |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 25, 2017 | <1 hr | 2,586 (35%) | Unnamed event |
| Oct 13, 2021 | 9 hrs | 2,570 (35%) | Drought |
| Jun 27, 2024 | 9 hrs | 2,441 (33%) | Thunderstorm Wind |
| Jul 15, 2019 | 4 hrs | 2,103 (28%) | Thunderstorm Wind |
| Jun 19, 2023 | 1 hrs | 1,931 (26%) | Unnamed event |
Was There an Outage on a Specific Date?
Pick a date to see whether a power outage was recorded for Dawson County, Montana that day.
Over the 9 years from 2017 to 2025, Dawson County recorded 106 distinct power outage events, averaging 1.2 hours per event.
The single worst outage on record in Dawson County started May 25, 2017, lasting less than 1 hour and leaving up to 2,586 customers without power (35% of the county) at its peak.
June has historically been the worst month for outages in Dawson County, with 19 events recorded during that month across the dataset.
Based on this history, Dawson County earns a Reliability Grade of A, placing it in the 93rd percentile nationally for grid reliability (higher percentile = more reliable).
Similar counties in Montana
Counties with the closest reliability grade and national percentile to Dawson County.
| County | Grade | National percentile |
|---|---|---|
| Big Horn County | A | 94th |
| Fallon County | A | 94th |
| Roosevelt County | A | 94th |
| Powder River County | A | 95th |
| Gallatin County | A | 92nd |
Most reliable counties nationally
The top 3 counties nationally by reliability grade and percentile.
| County | State | Grade | National percentile |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clay County | South Dakota | A | 100th |
| Clearwater County | Minnesota | A | 99th |
| Limestone County | Alabama | A | 99th |
Least reliable counties nationally
The bottom 3 counties nationally by reliability grade and percentile.
| County | State | Grade | National percentile |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clay County | West Virginia | F | 0th |
| Lincoln County | West Virginia | F | 0th |
| Cameron Parish | Louisiana | F | 0th |
FAQ
How often does power go out in Dawson County?
Between 2017 and 2025, Dawson County recorded 106 outage events, averaging 1.2 hours each.
What is Dawson County's reliability grade?
Dawson County has a Reliability Grade of A, in the 93rd national percentile.
What was the worst power outage in Dawson County?
The worst outage on record started May 25, 2017, lasting less than 1 hour and affecting up to 2,586 customers.