We're prepared for any emergency situation. We have experienced and qualified crews and the equipment to help restore service faster than ever before. When necessary, we may ask for assistance from contract crews and other utilities to help us restore your electric service as quickly and as safely as possible.
We encourage you to take the following steps to prepare for extended power outage situations:
- Check medications that require refrigeration. Talk with your doctor or pharmacist to find out if the medication would be affected by a prolonged interruption of power. You may want to keep a small cooler handy so you can store your medication on ice until your power is restored.
- Put your refrigerator and freezer at their coldest settings. Keep a blanket handy to throw over these appliances to serve as extra insulation. (Be sure to return the settings to their normal temperatures once your power has been restored.)
- Secure extra ice. Ice can help maintain cold temperatures in your freezer and refrigerator. Use plastic bags filled with ice (or fill plastic jugs with water if you have enough time to freeze them in your freezer).
- Set aside water either in bottles or in plastic jugs.
- Be prepared to cook outside on your grill. DO NOT bring your grill inside your home to cook. A grill without proper ventilation can be deadly.
- Stock up on batteries and easy-to-prepare foods. Don't forget to have extra batteries for flashlights. Have a flashlight for each family member. Keep a manual can opener handy.
- Unplug sensitive equipment (computer, VCR, stereo, answering machine, garage door opener, etc.). You may want to consider purchasing surge protectors for those extra-sensitive devices, such as your computer.
- Keep a battery-operated radio handy, as well as additional batteries to operate it.
- You may want to use a portable generator. Be sure to install it according to manufacturer's instructions. Never plug your generator into your home's electric system; always plug your appliance directly into the generator. Use the generator in a well-ventilated area or keep it outdoors and run your appliance's plug to it. Check our portable generator safety tips to ensure safe operation of your portable generator.
Be prepared. Gather and store an Outage Kit.
Each kit should be stored in a convenient place, ready to use if your power goes out. Be sure everyone in your family knows where the outage kit is located. For a list of items that should be included in the kit, visit preparing an outage kit.
