News Releases

February 5, 2016

WALTHAM, Mass. - So much for Punxsutawney Phil's forecast of an early spring. Amid the sounds of cracking branches and falling trees, National Grid line and tree crews are blanketing eastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island, restoring power to customers who lost service because of today's heavy, wet snow.

At some points the storm, which affected a much larger area for longer than initially expected, dumped as much as one to two inches per hour of snow, bringing hundreds of tree limbs and trees down on power lines. As of 6 pm, the company estimates there are approximately 62,000 customers without power in Massachusetts and 29,000 out in Rhode Island.

National Grid crews have been out restoring power since early this morning when the snow began falling, and more crews are en route to help get customers back on line as quickly and safely as possible. The company has opened storm rooms across eastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island so crews can be dispatched and the response effort can be managed locally. The local restoration efforts and any central support needs are being coordinated from National Grid's Emergency Operations Center in Worcester.

National Grid also is working closely with local and state public officials in both states in an effort to keep lines of communication open and coordinate logistics to help expedite the restoration. With all the trees and tree limbs down and already poor driving conditions expected to deteriorate tonight, National Grid is urging the public to take precautions to avoid injury from falling trees and downed wires that could potentially be live. It's also important to be careful around snowbanks as there could be wires buried in them.

'We've already heard news reports about a young girl injured by a falling tree limb, and our crews are seeing first-hand that trees are down and continue to come down all over the place,' said Dan Bunszell, National Grid's vice president of New England Operations. 'If you must go out, please be extremely careful and keep a sharp eye out for falling branches, trees and power lines that may come down with them.'

Crews will continue to work through the night restoring customers. The current expectation is that the vast majority of customers will have been restored by midnight tomorrow night, with the possible exception of some areas where access is a problem or equipment damage is particularly severe.

'We appreciate our customers' patience as our crews work as quickly as possible to get them back on line, and the support from our communities and state emergency management officials,' said Bunszell. 'Our crews and the folks behind the scenes supporting them will be working around the clock until every customer has service.'

National Grid Massachusetts and Rhode Island customers who lose power should call the company's outage reporting line at 1-800-465-1212. National Grid provides multiple channels for customers to learn about service issues and interruptions during storms. Customers can follow the storm on their mobile devices by using the National Grid mobile app or texting the word STORM to NGRID (64743). The company provides real time outage information on its Outage Central web site at nationalgridus.com/OutageCentral. National Grid also provides storm and restoration updates through Facebook and Twitter.

Customers Urged to Make Safety a Priority

National Grid offers the following tips for customers to minimize inconvenience and maximize safety in the event that storm-related power interruptions occur.

  • National Grid customers who experience an outage should call 1-800-465-1212 to expedite restoration.
  • Never touch downed power lines, and always assume that any fallen lines are live electricity wires. If you see one, report it immediately to National Grid or your local emergency response organization.
  • Check on elderly family members, neighbors and others who may need assistance during an outage period.

Electricity & generator safety

  • If you use a generator to supply power during an outage, be sure to operate it outdoors. Before operating a generator, disconnect from National Grid's system by shutting off the main breaker located in the electric service panel. Failure to do this could jeopardize the safety of line crews and the public.
  • If you lose power, turn off any appliances that were on when the power went off, but leave one light on so you will know when power is restored.

Gas safety

  • The buildup of ice and snow around or over gas meters and vents for natural gas appliances could pose a serious safety risk. Ice and snow falling from a roof can damage gas meters or service connections to customers' homes or businesses, resulting in a gas leak.
  • Ice and snow blocking vents could cause carbon monoxide to back up into a building and result in carbon monoxide poisoning for those inside. To avoid these dangers, National Grid advises natural gas customers to closely inspect areas around and over gas meters, service hook-ups and vents for ice and snow that could damage equipment or prevent carbon monoxide from properly venting.

National Grid advises that you take immediate action anytime you suspect a natural gas leak:

  • Get Out - All occupants should leave the house immediately. Do not use the telephone or light switches for any reason.
  • Call Us - After leaving the house and reaching a safe environment, call the National Grid 24-hour gas emergency number: Greater Boston area: 1-800-233-5325; All other areas: 1-800-548-8000 or call 911.
  • Stay Out - Do not return to your home until National Grid tells you it is safe.

About National Grid

National Grid (LSE: NG; NYSE: NGG) is an electricity and natural gas delivery company that connects nearly 7 million customers to vital energy sources through its networks in New York, Massachusetts and Rhode Island. It is the largest distributor of natural gas in the Northeast. National Grid also operates the systems that deliver gas and electricity across Great Britain.

Through its U.S. Connect21 strategy, National Grid is transforming its electricity and natural gas networks to support the 21st century digital economy with smarter, cleaner, and more resilient energy solutions. Connect21 is vital to our communities' long-term economic and environmental health and aligns with regulatory initiatives in New York (REV: Reforming the Energy Vision) and Massachusetts (Grid Modernization).

For more information please visit our website, or our Connecting website, follow us on Twitter, watch us on YouTube, friend us on Facebook, find our photos on Instagram

National Grid plc issued this content on 05 February 2016 and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed by Public, unedited and unaltered, on 06 February 2016 00:30:21 UTC

Original Document: http://www.nationalgridus.com/aboutus/a3-1_news2.asp?document=10153