Dark streets across Muskogee are being addressed rapidly after the city uncovered more than 300 non-working streetlights.Muskogees 27thStreet is where Candi Washington has always called home.Born and raised here, said Candi Wash ington.She says two years ago, the light at the corner of 27thand Caddo went out.Its been so many things that have happened since the lights went off, said Washington.Concerned about people walking in the dark, dogs roaming, and crime, she reported it.I am sometimes working, and I dont like coming in and it being dark, said Washington. Even when we have our porchlights on, its still very dark in the area.It wasnt until Feb 5. that it was finally turned back on.Theres less likely to be foul activity going on when theres light on, said Washington.Its part of an effort to get hundreds of broken streetlights fixed across Muskogee. In the Feb 2. city council meeting, the city manager addressed the issue.The police department has been cataloging streetlights that are out, said Kendal Francis. Almost on a nightly basis, theyve been turning in those numbers to public works.Theyve found out about 300 lights so far. That is a combination of city-owned and privately-owned lights.OGE said theyve got about 100 streetlights working in the past few weeks and are sending extra crews to Muskogee to fix the rest. The power company expects the work to be largely finished in about two weeks.We heard the citizens, said Francis. We understand that it truly is a problem and were working diligently to take steps to correct it.City Manager Kendal Francis said older lights will be replaced with new LED ones, and city staff are marking the light poles so neighbors can see which lights have already been reported.Washington says shes just glad her street is bright again.Well, thank you, Jesus. The lights are back on, said Washington. In times like these, we need to have some reassurance that we can be safe.If you need to report an outage, you can visit the citys website. You can also visit OGE's website or the OGE app.OGE issued this statement:"We appreciate our partnership with the City of Muskogee in serving the community. OGE has been working closely with the City on restoring close to 100 streetlights in the past few weeks. Right now, OGE has mobilized additional crews to Muskogee to complete this work.OGE customers and concerned citizens can now also report streetlight outages online at OGE.com/ReportOutage and in the OGE app."The safety of the public and our crews is always our top priority, and work is scheduled to minimize traffic impacts. We appreciate the Public Works Department Team and City of Muskogees leadership."The City of Muskogee issued this statement:"The City of Muskogee has heard the concerns expressed by City Council and residents regarding streetlight outages and has taken immediate action in close coordination with OGE.The Muskogee Police Department, while on patrol, has begun cataloging non-functioning streetlights, and providing that information to the Public Works Department. Public Works then determines whether the light is City-owned or a private security (private pay) light, and shares that information with OGE. To date, approximately 300 lights have been identified, comprising City streetlights and private security lights.The City appreciates its strong partnership with OGE. City staff and OGE have worked closely together to develop a coordinated, strategic plan to systematically address streetlight outages across the community and prioritize repairs based on need and location.Residents may see marked or flagged poles throughout the city, which indicates the outage has been identified and added to the repair list. As repairs move forward, older legacy streetlights will be replaced with modern LED lighting where applicable.This process will take time due to the scope of work involved. City-controlled streetlights are being addressed as quickly as possible, and residents can assist by reporting outages through the SeeClickFix app or on the Citys website at MuskogeeOK.gov/SeeClickFix.Street lighting is an important component of neighborhood safety, and the City of Muskogee remains committed alongside OGE to restoring reliable lighting throughout the community."Stay in touch with us anytime, anywhere -- 2 News Oklahoma on your schedule | Download on your TV, watch for free. How to watch on your streaming device Download our free app for Apple, Android and Kindle devices. Like us on Facebook Follow us on Instagram Watch LIVE 24/7 on YouTube ...read more read less