PERRYVILLE – Citizens Electric Corporation (CEC) currently has over 1,700 members out of power. Heavy snow accumulations have caused trees and limbs to fall into power lines resulting in broken poles and downed wires while conditions are slowing restoration of service. Due to the outages being widespread throughout Citizens’ service area there is no immediate estimate when power will be restored to specific locations, however most members’ power should be restored by Thursday evening (January 26th).
Members located within remote areas may not have power restored until Friday (January 27th) due to possible timber clearing and other unique challenges.
CEC is being assisted by thirty outside contractors as well as two crews from Gascosage Electric Cooperative. Almost 1,000 members have had power restored since the beginning of the storm.
Members should not attempt to remove or trim foliage within 10 feet of a power line. If a tree or tree limbs have fallen on a power line or pulled down, do not get close to the line.
The public is reminded to never touch, move, or drive over downed power lines when clearing debris from yards, roads, driveways, and other areas.
Citizens Electric says members who have damaged or exposed electrical equipment that is not property of Citizens need to request a contractor to repair equipment before CEC linemen can safely reconnect.
To report an outage or to speak with a member services representative, please call 1-877-876-3511 and follow the prompts.