High winds along coast and inland increase outage risk over next 24 hours
PORTLAND, Ore. — A powerful Pacific storm coming on the heels of a significant ice and wind event will increase the potential for widespread power outages from Crescent City, Calif. to the Portland area over the next 24 hours.
“The winds that are headed our way have the potential to cause damage to trees already weakened by the previous storm,” said Allen Berreth, vice president, operations. “We are always prepared to respond with crews at the ready to repair damage as fast as possible and reduce the amount of time any customer is without service. We are staging personnel and equipment to respond to outages as they occur.”
Pacific Power’s meteorology team is closely monitoring forecasts and field personnel are prepping for wind-related impacts late this evening and into Tuesday. Forecasts call for potentially damaging winds hitting Crescent City and Yreka by 8 p.m. tonight. The storm will work its way north along the coast overnight with high winds likely in the Willamette Valley and the Portland area by Tuesday morning.
Forecasts indicate the fast-moving storm will exit the area by Tuesday evening.
To ensure that you are prepared for outages, we ask that every home maintain an emergency outage kit that includes the following:
- Flashlight
- Battery-operated radio and clock
- Extra batteries
- Non-perishable foods
- Manual can opener
- Bottled water
- Blankets
If a power outage occurs, Pacific Power encourages customers to first check their fuses and circuit breakers. If the power failure is not caused inside the home or business, customers should report the outage to Pacific Power at 1-877-508-5088 or by texting OUT to 722797.
Get the app. The Pacific Power app for mobile devices can become invaluable during an outage. You can report and track an outage affecting you from your mobile device. The app is free and can be downloaded on the App Store or Google Play.
Pacific Power suggests these safety precautions once a storm has hit:
- 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 immediately, then report it to Pacific Power at 1-877-508-5088.
- Extensive rain may cause flooding or landslides. Be especially careful of any standing water or even soggy ground. A live, downed wire may seem to be a safe distance away, but it is still extremely dangerous due to wet conditions.
- Don’t drive over downed power lines.