CHARLESTON, W.Va. – With forecasts of more than a foot of snow to hit parts of its Virginia service territory by Thursday, Appalachian Power on Wednesday moved nearly 100 contractors and employees into areas expected to experience the most severe effects of the winter storm.
“We have been monitoring the weather conditions closely and are taking steps to speed restoration should outages occur,” said Phil Wright, Appalachian Power’s vice president of distribution operations. “While some storm-related outages may occur with this much snow, we are confident our system will hold up well. In addition, our pre-planning efforts are designed to minimize any inconveniences our customers may experience because of the weather.”
American Electric Power meteorologists are calling for snow Wednesday evening and overnight in much of the company’s Virginia, West Virginia and Tennessee territory. Company meteorologists look at not only weather forecasts, but also how the weather is expected to affect the electric system. With this storm, colder temperatures and a lack of wind should work in Appalachian’s favor to limit widespread outages, Wright said.
Appalachian Power has moved about 60 line mechanics into the Roanoke area, where some of the heaviest snow is predicted. Plus, about 32 contractors will be staged in Princeton, strategically located to respond where needed on Thursday, he said.
Additional crews will be ready on Thursday to respond to local outages or travel to more heavily affected areas. If the additional help is not needed once the storm passes through the region, those extra crews are on standby to assist other utilities whose customers are located within the predicted storm area.
“When major power outages occur from severe storms or other disasters, regional mutual assistance allows utility companies to pool their resources to assist companies in need,” Wright said. “We may be the ones providing assistance this time. Next time, we may be in need of help because the number of resources needed to restore power after a severe weather event far exceeds the requirements of day-to-day operations.”
Customers who do lose service can help speed restoration by turning off all electric appliances, including heating and air conditioning systems, until 10 to 30 minutes after power has been restored. This step helps prevent circuit overload situations. Outages can be reported to Appalachian Power by calling the customer service center toll-free. In Tennessee, the number is 1-800-967-4237; Virginia, 1-800-956-4237; and West Virginia, 1-800-982-4237. During times of high call volume callers may hear a recorded message and can leave a voice message about the outage.
Those customers with access to a laptop, smartphone or tablet have the option to report an outage online at www.AppalachianPower.com. They also can track their individual outage at www.AppalachianPower.com/MyOutage with a user ID and password.
Customers can prepare for outages by assembling an emergency kit with flashlights and fresh batteries; battery-powered radios or televisions; candles, matches, or lighters; water for drinking and cooking; portable heater (oil or gas); camping equipment (sleeping bags, camp stoves, lanterns); canned goods and a manual can opener and manufacturers' instructions for power-operated equipment such as the garage door. Customers should charge cell phones and have a mobile charger for their automobiles.
Appalachian Power provides electricity to 1 million customers in Virginia, West Virginia and Tennessee (as AEP Appalachian Power). It is a unit of American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP), one of the largest electric utilities in the United States, with more than 5 million customers in 11 states. AEP ranks among the nation’s largest generators of electricity, owning nearly 38,000 megawatts of generating capacity in the U.S. AEP also owns the nation’s largest electricity transmission system, a nearly 39,000-mile network that includes more 765 kilovolt extra-high voltage transmission lines than all other U.S. transmission systems combined.