Rutherford 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 24, 2022 | 9 hrs | 20,637 (13%) | Winter Storm Elliott |
| May 5, 2020 | 29 hrs | 17,188 (11%) | Thunderstorm Wind |
| Feb 10, 2025 | 1 hrs | 16,030 (10%) | Drought |
| Jul 6, 2022 | <1 hr | 15,308 (9%) | Unnamed event |
| Jan 21, 2021 | <1 hr | 11,589 (7%) | Unnamed event |
Was There an Outage on a Specific Date?
Pick a date to see whether a power outage was recorded for Rutherford County, Tennessee that day.
Over the 12 years from 2014 to 2025, Rutherford County recorded 886 distinct power outage events, averaging 1.3 hours per event.
The single worst outage on record in Rutherford County started December 24, 2022 (Winter Storm Elliott), lasting 9 hours and leaving up to 20,637 customers without power (13% of the county) at its peak.
July has historically been the worst month for outages in Rutherford County, with 116 events recorded during that month across the dataset.
Based on this history, Rutherford County earns a Reliability Grade of A, placing it in the 92nd percentile nationally for grid reliability (higher percentile = more reliable).
Similar counties in Tennessee
Counties with the closest reliability grade and national percentile to Rutherford County.
| County | Grade | National percentile |
|---|---|---|
| Hardeman County | A | 92nd |
| Smith County | A | 92nd |
| Anderson County | A | 91st |
| Williamson County | A | 90th |
| Hamblen County | A | 90th |
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 Rutherford County?
Between 2014 and 2025, Rutherford County recorded 886 outage events, averaging 1.3 hours each.
What is Rutherford County's reliability grade?
Rutherford County has a Reliability Grade of A, in the 92nd national percentile.
What was the worst power outage in Rutherford County?
The worst outage on record started December 24, 2022 (Winter Storm Elliott), lasting 9 hours and affecting up to 20,637 customers.