To report an outage, call
1-800-448-2383
Blue Ridge Energy Working Around the Clock on Historic Outage Restoration
Blue Ridge Energy line technicians are battling flooding, mudslides and trees that continue falling onto power lines as work continues to restore power to over 60,000 members.
The cooperative advises members that full restoration will be a muti-day effort due to extensive damage and inaccessible locations. Sister cooperatives and right of way contractors have released crews to assist Blue Ridge Energy. Crews are working around the clock to restore power as quickly and safely as possible for line crews and the public.
“Over 75 percent of the cooperative’s membership has been affected from damage that is worse than we experienced from the 2009 ice storm and what we are comparing to Hurricane Hugo—the two most damaging storms in our history,” said Renee Walker, director of public relations.
Blue Ridge Energy is using drones and a helicopter to access the full scope of damage. At this point in storm damage of this magnitude, it is not possible to give outage restoration times. However, members can be assured that crews are working in full force to repair damages and restore power.
“These are very long and dangerous conditions for our line technicians, and we appreciate the support from members and the public, including local grocery stores, Wal-Mart, and restaurants that have helped us feed our crews to help them stay energized during power restoration efforts,” Walker said. “We also appreciate the local hotels helping us house visiting crews,” she added.
Safety of line crews and the public is paramount for the cooperative. Downed power lines can still be energized, and therefore dangerous or even deadly! The cooperative warns the public to stay far away from downed lines. Only a trained line technician should ever go near a downed power line. Report downed lines by calling 1-800-451-5474.
While Blue Ridge Energy is aware of outages and system operators are monitoring conditions, members should only report outages by calling PowerLine at 1-800-448-2383, by using the Blue Ridge Energy mobile app, or, by texting OUT to 70216. Outage reports cannot be accepted over social media. Outage status is available 24/7 on the cooperative’s live outage map at www.BlueRidgeEnergy.com and on the mobile app.
Blue Ridge Energy serves some 80,000 members in Caldwell, Watauga, Ashe, and Alleghany counties as well as parts of Avery, Alexander and Wilkes counties. Learn more at www.BlueRidgeEnergy.com or on the cooperative’s social media on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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