10 Things You Might Not Know About Power Outages and Restoration
Have you ever watched a video or TV show where a person is cooking a meal, then suddenly, they snap their fingers, and the meal is plated and ready to eat? That’s called a jump cut. While we wish we could “jump cut” from a power outage to power restoration, it often takes much more effort and people to make that happen.
At Union County Electric Cooperative, we are accustomed to members’ questions about power outages and why getting the lights back on can take time. Given our reliance on electricity, there’s never a good time to be without it.
This month, I’d like to shed light on what causes power outages, and our restoration process. Hopefully this will help members understand what may be happening behind the scenes.
Here are 10 things you might not know about power outages and restoration:
1. We Need You. It might be at your home or a small neighborhood section when your power goes out. Although we have the technology to know when meters lose power, it is helpful to hear from those impacted. This helps us to deploy crews quicker and identify the cause of the outage sooner. If you experience a power outage, our dispatch can be reach 24/7 at 605-356-3395.
2. Animals, Trees and Weather. Most outages on our system are caused by weather, animals or vegetation contacting equipment. Extreme hot or cold conditions can also stress the equipment, causing it to fail. While we do everything we can to minimize these events, simply put, we can’t control nature.
3. Our Employees Might Be Affected Too. Because Union County Electric Cooperative is a local electric cooperative owned by the members we serve, our employees are local too. They are your neighbors, friends and community volunteers. When you’re without power, our employees may be too.
4. It’s A Team Effort. Union County Electric’s employees are working to restore your power as soon as possible. Our office staff take your calls, documenting information and relaying notes to the line crew. The line crews are surveying damage and apparent hazards while they put together a plan to restore service. Meanwhile, we do our best to post updates on social media to keep people informed. When your power goes out, we all work together quickly and safely to get your life back to normal.
5. We Assess The Situation First. Every outage is different. We never know how dangerous it is or what equipment may need to be replaced. When responding to outages, we first need to find what caused the outage, then figure out what materials we need and a plan for how to fix the problem(s) without compromising electric flow for the rest of our members.
6. Prioritizing Outage Restoration. Our crews focus on responding first to public safety issues and critical services. Then, we complete work that impacts the most significant number of people. Our employees face many dangers. In addition to working around high-voltage electricity, our crews are on alert for wild animals, weather elements, falling trees, and fast-moving vehicles. If you see our crews on the side of the road, please slow down and move over.
7. Flicker Lights Are A Good Thing. Some folks mistake flickering lights for outages, but these “blinks” are important because they indicate our equipment worked and prevented a possible outage, likely caused by wayward animals or a stray tree limb on the line.
8. You Need a Backup Plan. We do our best to help those who need it, but if you depend on electricity for life support purposes, you must have a backup plan – remember, we don’t always know how long restoration efforts will take. If you were not aware, Union County Electric also sells, installs and services Generac standby generators that can help ensure you have power while our crews work on restoring power.
9. Our Crews Have To Make A Plan. If you ever see our trucks in a parking lot or parked on the side of the road while your power is out, know that sometimes our employees huddle in a safe, common area to map out their plan for getting your power back on.
10. Sometimes It’s A Waiting Game. Our portion of the power grid is connected to other electric utilities, and we maintain positive relationships with our power providers interconnected to our system. If our outage is due to an issue with the power supply feed into our system, we must let them do their repairs and be mindful of what they’re going through to fix it.
We do our best to avoid power disruptions, which are sometimes inevitable. If the lights go out, know that your Co-op team works quickly and safely to restore power. If you experience an outage, please let us know by reporting it. Call our office anytime at 605-356-3395.
Until next month, stay safe and God bless.
Quote of the Month: “If you fell down yesterday, stand up today” – H.G. Wells, Author