About 12,000 CVPS customers are without power this morning. Heavy wet snow began building up and bringing down trees, tree limbs and lines primarily in Windham and Windsor counties around 4:30 a.m. A large transmission fault occurred at about 7 am, affecting more than 5,500 customers. Crews are working to sectionalize that problem, and restore power to those customers within the hour. The storm is expected to continue until early this afternoon, so we may also see additional outages this morning.
‘Crews reported about 6 to 8 inches of heavy wet snow in Windsor and Windham counties,’ said spokeswoman Christine Rivers.
The towns of Dummerston, Jamaica, Cavendish, Chester and Hartford were hit hardest earlier this morning, and now Woodstock Town and Village, among others are without power due to the transmission fault. We also have broken pole just outside the Riverside substation in Springfield.
‘We will work as quickly as we safely can this morning to restore power to our customers, however we may see additional outages this morning, so numbers may go up,’ Rivers said. ‘Barring any large additional problems, power should be restored to customers by tonight.’
Please check vtoutages.com and http://www.cvps.com/CustomerService/outages for up-to-date power outage numbers by town, and page me if you need additional information.
SAFETY -- STAY AWAY FROM DOWNED POWER LINES
Don't touch or even go near downed wires! These wires can be energized and can cause serious injuries or death. If the line is blocking the road or in contact with a vehicle with people inside, call your local police or fire emergency number first. Then call CVPS. Instruct others to keep at least 50 feet away, and keep pets and livestock away as well.
Assume all objects touching the power line are also energized. Never attempt to remove trees or limbs from any utility lines! Notify CVPS of the situation.
CVPS offered several safety tips for coping with the outages:
Treat any downed line as if it is live. Report the line to your local utility and fire department, stay at least 50 feet away from the line, and keep children and pets away as well.
If using a generator, read and follow the owner's manual before starting the generator. Never operate a generator inside any structure or near a structure. Use a transfer switch to ensure electricity is not accidentally fed onto a line where line crews must work.
Keep freezers and refrigerators closed as much as possible to prevent food spoilage.
If power goes out, turn off all electrical appliances except one light so you'll know when service returns. Then, turn equipment back on slowly.
CVPS 11.23.2011