As Pacific Power crews work to restore power, utility offers tips, safety precautions

MEDFORD, Ore. (Jan. 3, 2022) — Nearly 550 Pacific Power line crews, contractors and support personnel continued service restoration work after a series of storms brought high winds, mid-elevation snow and heavy rain to portions of the company’s service area.

Working through stormy, sometimes freezing conditions, crews made good progress restoring service to more than 47,000 customers from Sunday afternoon to Monday afternoon with coastal communities including Astoria, Lincoln City and Coos Bay initially hit with the bulk of outages as the storm system moved inland.

Additional crews were at the ready to respond and will continue restoration work into Tuesday as any new weather-related outages occur. 

As of 5 p.m. Monday, approximately 7,600 customers were without power and in the process of having service restored. Most customers are expected to have service restored by Midnight tonight with some small, isolated outages in the Coos Bay and Enterprise areas lingering into Tuesday. Visit pacificpower.net/outages for a map showing current restoration time estimates.

“We appreciate our customers’ patience and understanding as Pacific Power crews work around the clock to restore service,” said Curtis Mansfield, senior vice president of power delivery. “Our teams are as persistent as this weather system seems to be and we’ll keep working until everyone’s lights are back on.”

Pacific Power emergency managers and regional business managers are working with local emergency officials to prioritize power restoration to critical facilities in the communities affected by extended outages.

Pacific Power encourages customers to report outages by calling 1-877-508-5088 or text OUT to 722797. Customers can text STAT to 722797 to check the status of their outage.

To ease the inconvenience of power outages and assist crews in restoring power, Pacific Power suggests the following tips and safety precautions:

• Stay away from all downed power lines and utility lines. Even if the lines are not sparking, they could be energized and extremely dangerous. Call 911 and report the outage to Pacific Power at 1-877-508-5088. 
• Don’t drive over downed power lines.
• Maintain safe distances from workers. Repair work is being done under our COVID-19 safety protocols. Waves and acknowledgement are welcome, but please allow crews to do their work at an appropriate distance both for operational and COVID-19 safety.
• If there is damage to your service mast or weatherhead, where the powerline connects to your home or business, you will need to contact a licensed electrician for repairs before service can be restored. Our crews can only work on company-owned equipment.
• Check on your neighbors, especially those who may need special assistance. Also, check with others who have electricity, to see if you can visit.
• If you have power at this time, keep mobile devices charged so that they may be used in an emergency. Before anything happens, download the Pacific Power app to your smart device so you can have information readily available.
• Keep refrigerator and freezer doors closed. Most food requiring refrigeration can be kept safely in a closed refrigerator for several hours. An unopened refrigerator will keep food cold for about 4 hours. A full freezer will keep the temperature for about 48 hours. 
• Remember your pets! Pets who spend a lot of time outdoors need more food in the winter because keeping warm depletes energy.
• Never burn charcoal for heating or cooking indoors. If you are using alternate heat or cooking sources, remember to allow plenty of ventilation. 
• If you are using a generator, make sure to follow all manufacturer’s instructions. Make sure the generator is outside and not near any household air intakes. Do not connect the generator directly to your breaker box as this can create a dangerous situation for crews working on the powerlines. Instead, plug essential appliances directly into the generator.