Pepco Crews Working to Restore Power

Pepco crews worked overnight to restore power to the vast majority of customers who lost power as severe thunderstorms moved through the service area Thursday evening. The storms — which brought high winds, lightning and intense rain — knocked out service to about 45,000 customers in the District of Columbia and Montgomery and Prince George’s counties in Maryland.

The storm left one substation out of service, another partially disabled and 27 feeder lines out. By morning, the substations and feeders had been restored, and outages were down to under 3,000 customers. Because most of the remaining outages affect single customers or very small groups, crews estimate the final customers will be restored by midnight tonight. Crews will continue to work around the clock as quickly and safely as possible to restore power to each and every customer. In a news release, Pepco said it had about 150 internal linemen and more than 200 contractors already working on the system. Crews from Pepco’s sister utility Atlantic City Electric also are expected today to assist with restoration.

Crews being able to ping smart meters to confirm whether customers are still actually out of service is helping to speed restoration and avoid unnecessary visits to verify service.

Safety is Pepco’s number one priority. Customers are reminded to stay clear of working crews and any wires hanging loose from poles or lying on the ground. Customers should always assume that downed wires are energized and avoid them.

Customers can report outages by calling 1.877.PEPCO62, visiting pepco.com or through the mobile app, available for download at pepco.com/mobile app. It is important that customers report their outages and request a call back to verify their power has been restored.

Customers need to be prepared for the possibility of service interruptions and should check their emergency supply kits.

The Pepco website also has the ability to work in concert with Pepco’s Mobile App 2.0. The new version of the mobile app provides customers with access to My Account, storm preparation and restoration information and Pepco social media, available for download at pepco.com/mobileapp.

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