Power Out in Topeka? When to Call Evergy and When to Call an Electrician

Updated November 2026 · 7 min read

Short answer: if the whole street is dark, it is a utility outage. Report it to Evergy and follow restoration on the Evergy outage map. If your house is out (or half out) while the neighbors have lights, check your breakers first; if that doesn't fix it, the problem may be on the house side, which is a job for a licensed electrician. If a storm pulled the service wires off the house, you usually need both: an electrician repairs the house side, and Evergy reconnects.

This guide is for homes in Topeka, KS and the nearby towns. Topeka Electricians is not Evergy and is not affiliated with it. This site can't see outages or restore power, so for anything on the utility side, go straight to Evergy.

Is it just your house or the whole neighborhood?

Two minutes of checking tells you who to contact. Work through these in order:

1. Look outside. Are streetlights, porch lights and the neighbors' windows dark? If so, it is almost certainly an Evergy outage.
2. Check the outage map. Open the Evergy outage map on your phone. If your area shows an outage, report yours if it isn't listed and wait for restoration updates.
3. Check your panel. If neighbors have power, open the breaker panel. Look for a breaker sitting in the middle or off position, including the main breaker. Push it firmly to off, then back on, once.
4. Check the outside. From a safe distance, look at where the wires meet the house. A sagging line, a bent mast or a meter base pulled from the wall points to storm damage.
5. Decide. Street dark or wires down: Evergy. Only your house, breakers won't reset, or the house-side equipment is damaged: an electrician.

Some rural addresses around Topeka are served by FreeState Electric Cooperative, not Evergy. If your bill says FreeState, report outages at 1-800-794-1989 or check the FreeState outage map. Holton has a city-owned electric utility. If you aren't sure who serves you, check your bill.

Who to contact for common outage problems

When it's Evergy's job

Evergy delivers power to Topeka, Lawrence and most nearby towns. Problems with the lines on the poles, transformers, the street circuit and, in most homes, the meter itself are on the utility side. You can't hire anyone to fix those, and you shouldn't try.

• Report the outage on the Evergy outage map or through Evergy's app or website.
• Treat every downed line as live. Keep kids and pets well away, and don't drive over it.
• Unplug sensitive electronics so the return of power doesn't hit them all at once.
• Leave one lamp switched on so you know when power is back.

When it's an electrician's job

Once power reaches your meter, the wiring and equipment after it belong to the homeowner. A licensed electrician handles:

• a breaker that won't reset, or a main breaker that trips under load;
• part of the house dead after a storm while the utility side checks out;
• a burning smell, a warm panel cover or scorched outlets;
• storm damage to the weatherhead, service mast or meter base (see our guide to weatherhead and meter base storm damage);
• damage after a nearby lightning strike (see what to check after lightning).

Our emergency electrician guide covers these urgent cases in more detail, including what to do before anyone arrives.

Half the house has no power: what does that mean?

Most Topeka homes get power on two 120-volt legs. When one leg drops, roughly half the lights and outlets go dark, and 240-volt appliances like an electric dryer, range or central air may stop or run oddly. The cause can be on either side of the meter: a damaged service drop or a utility connection, or a failing main breaker, loose lug or damaged conductor in the house.

Start with Evergy, because that side is theirs to check and costs you nothing to report. If the utility says its side is fine, call an electrician. Don't keep resetting breakers or running big appliances on a half-working service.

Topeka outages by the dates

Big outages are part of life in northeast Kansas. A few dated examples:

• June 8, 1966: the F5 tornado killed 17 people, per the NWS Topeka office, and "power and utilities in many parts of the city were out for weeks."
• March 18–19, 1984: an ice storm cut power to about 100,000 people, most of the city, with some areas out for more than a week (NWS).
• December 10–11, 2007: a statewide ice storm left many Kansas areas without power for one to two weeks (NWS Wichita).
• June 26, 2024: 12,901 Topeka customers were without power in 65 separate outages early that morning (WIBW).
• July 31, 2024: storms caused about 13,000 outages in the Topeka area, per Evergy as reported by WIBW.

In events like these, the utility restores its lines first. House-side damage waits until a licensed electrician repairs it, so getting a written quote lined up early can help.

After the power comes back

• Plug electronics back in one at a time.
• Reset any GFCI outlets in kitchens, baths, garages and outdoors.
• Check the refrigerator, freezer, sump pump and furnace.
• Watch for lights that flicker or dim; persistent flicker is worth a call (see why lights flicker).
• If you used a portable generator, make sure it was connected through an interlock or transfer switch, never by backfeeding. Our interlock vs transfer switch guide explains why, and the generator installation page covers standby units.

What an electrician visit may cost

For more jobs and a calculator, see the Topeka electrician cost guide.

Questions to ask before work starts

• What is your City of Topeka license number?
• Can you send insurance and workers' comp certificates?
• Can I have a written, itemized quote before work starts?
• Is there a trip or diagnostic fee, and what is the after-hours rate?
• Who pulls the permit, if one is needed?
• Does the job need Evergy coordination, and is that included in the quote?

Kansas has no statewide electrician license; cities and counties license electricians (K.S.A. 12-1525). In Topeka, ask for the contractor's City of Topeka license and confirm it with Development Services (785-368-3905); the city also posts a licensed-contractor list. In Lawrence, check with Lawrence Building Safety (785-832-7700). Outside city limits in Shawnee County, Land Use & Development (785-251-5410) handles permits. Ask for certificates of liability insurance and workers' comp.

Frequently asked questions