Unitil Corporation, (Unitil.com), a provider of natural gas and electricity to customers in New England, is responding to outages in its service territory as a result of high overnight winds.
As of 6:00 AM, approximately 8,961 customers are without power, with 8,960 out in New Hampshire and 1 in Massachusetts. Wind gusts in excess of 50 mph have been reported, and high winds are expected to continue throughout the morning.
"Based on current conditions, it is likely additional outages will be reported as the morning continues, and without knowing how much additional damage may occur, it is difficult to accurately estimate how long it will take to fully restore power. Crews are currently restoring power as conditions allow working alongside first responders to help ensure public safety, and we are prepared for a long, busy day due to the wind."
Alec O’Meara, Unitil Media Relations Manager
Due to the high winds, there are reports of broken poles and fallen wires from damaged trees and branches. In the event of downed wires, assume all cables and wires that have fallen or dangling are energized and stay away. Be sure to avoid wet ground or puddles near a downed lined because water conducts electricity. In addition, keep away from all flooded and debris laden areas because they may be hiding downed lines. Stay in a safe place and avoid driving in damaged areas so you don’t interfere with rescue and restoration efforts.
Unitil will be communicating throughout the event through Public Service Announcements (PSAs), our website, our customer call center and through the media. We also encourage customers to follow along with our storm updates via Facebook, our Twitter feed (@Unitil) and we will be providing real-time outage information online at www.unitil.com/map.
IMPORTANT NOTE FOR MEDIA: Unitil asks that when reporting outage information, outlets time stamp the information. Outage numbers change hourly and we wish to make sure the information customers receive is consistent and understandable. Re-Tweets and re-posting of old information without referencing a time can create confusion.
Customers experiencing outages should call 1-888-301-7700.
