Dominion Energy Restoring Power in Wake of Hurricane Dorian
Staff Report From South Carolina CEO
Friday, September 6th, 2019
As Hurricane Dorian impacts Dominion Energy customers in South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia, the company has deployed people, materials and equipment across its multi-state territory to provide storm restoration. In South Carolina, more than 2,000 Dominion Energy employees and contract crew members have already begun restoring power to approximately 132,000 customers experiencing outages due to the storm’s strong winds and heavy rain. This outage count will likely fluctuate.
“With the safety of our customers and employees always our top priority, we’re working around the clock to restore power to every customer,” said Dominion Energy South Carolina President of Electric Operations Keller Kissam. “The restoration process takes time -- sometimes several days -- as many factors such as current weather conditions, downed trees and power lines and flooding can affect our ability to safely access areas where damaged infrastructure may be located. We appreciate our customers’ patience throughout the restoration process. Rest assured, we won’t stop working until the lights are back on for all of our customers.”
Restoring power to facilities critical to public health and safety such as hospitals is a top priority in the restoration process. The overall restoration process includes:
Assessing damage to the electric system to determine where crews and equipment will be dispatched.
Clearing obstructions such as fallen trees and other debris.
Repairing damage to parts of the system that affect the largest numbers of customers, such as power plants, transmission facilities and substations.
Repairing distribution poles and power lines that run to and through large communities.
Inspecting and repairing secondary service drops in residential neighborhoods.
Reporting Outages
The quickest and most efficient way to notify Dominion Energy of a power outage is to report it online using a mobile device. Dominion Energy’s website, dominionenergysc.com/report, is a mobile-friendly site.
Customers can report outages on the site or register their mobile device to have the option to report or check the status of an outage through text messaging. Once a phone is registered, customers can text the word “Out” to 467234 any time they lose power. They also can check the status of an outage by texting “Status” to the same number. Customers may also report outages by phone at 888-333-4465.
Safety Tips
Storms can cause tree limbs and entire trees to break and fall, sometimes taking power lines and even meter boxes down with them. Always assume any downed power line you see is energized and stay away. To report a downed line, call 888-333-4465.
Operate generators outside, away from flammable objects and do not run in unvented spaces without windows or cross-ventilation. Odorless and colorless carbon monoxide from gas-fueled generators can build up, resulting in injury or death. Don’t use an extension cord that is connected to a neighboring home or business. Depending on the connection, it can result in "silent feedback" to the utility‘s electrical distribution system. This improper use can cause problems and injury to electrical utility workers.