– Cooperative outages from Winter Storm Finn peaked at 35,000 on Tuesday; more than 99 percent of outages were restored in less than 20 hours –
North Carolina is facing another round of severe weather on Friday, and line crews with North Carolina’s electric cooperatives – the utilities that collectively power 45% of the state’s land mass and serve more than 2.5 million North Carolinians – are prepped, in place and ready to respond to any outages that might occur.
Forecasts show the potential for this system to bring damaging winds, brief heavy rainfall and the risk for tornadoes throughout the majority of the state. While the impact of this event is not anticipated to be as severe as Winter Storm Finn, these conditions, combined with an already saturated ground, could lead to power outages from downed trees and limbs.
“Just like with Finn, North Carolina’s electric cooperatives will continue to work – day and night, rain and shine – until power is restored to all members that experience outages from this week’s second system,” said Lee Ragsdale, senior vice president of energy delivery for North Carolina’s Electric Cooperatives, which provides energy and trade association services to the state’s 26 local electric co-ops. “Cooperative line crews are based in the communities they serve and that means they can begin restoration efforts quickly, as soon as conditions are safe.”
Cooperative members are encouraged to continue monitoring conditions and keep cell phones charged. If you see a downed power line, report it immediately to your local co-op or power utility. Under no circumstances should anyone approach, touch or drive over a fallen power line.
Real-time outage numbers from electric cooperatives across the state are available on a statewide Outage Map. For storm tips for all types of severe weather, including preparation check lists, food safety information, scam awareness and more, visit the cooperative Storm Center.