WASHINGTON, D.C. - About 7,600 Pepco customers remained without power Saturday morning after severe storms damaged utility equipment across the District and Maryland, the utility said.
Where outages remain
What we know:
Pepco Region President Amber Perry said the company had restored service to about 90% of the roughly 76,000 customers who lost power when the storms moved through Thursday night.
As of 8 a.m. Saturday, about 4,500 customers in Prince George’s County and about 3,000 customers in the District remained without service. Pepco said relatively few customers were still affected in Montgomery County.
Pepco Region President Amber Perry is scheduled to provide the utility’s latest estimated timelines for restoring service to customers in the District and Maryland.
Child rescued after tree crashes into Prince George’s County home during storms
Why some customers may wait longer
Big picture view:
The utility said crews have moved beyond the largest outages and are now addressing smaller groups of customers and individual homes.
That work can take longer because crews must reach multiple locations to remove trees from power lines, repair damage and replace snapped poles, officials said.
Pepco said it is using 300 to 400 internal crew members and mutual-assistance contractors in its restoration effort.
How Pepco prioritizes restoration
What's next:
The utility said safety is its first priority. Crews typically work first to restore service to hospitals, nursing homes and customers who rely on medical devices, followed by police and fire stations.
Pepco then focuses on repairs that can restore service to the largest groups of customers before moving to smaller outages and individual homes.
Safety reminders for customers without power
What you can do:
Pepco urged people to stay at least 30 feet away from downed power lines and to avoid driving beneath trees or wires hanging over roads. Downed lines should be reported to the utility at 1-877-PEPCO-62 or through Pepco’s storm page and customer account tools.
The company also urged customers without air conditioning to go to a relative’s or neighbor’s home, a library or another cool location rather than remain for extended periods in a hot house.
Anyone using a generator should follow the manufacturer’s safety instructions and keep it well away from the home, Pepco said.
The Source: This article was written using information from Pepco.