Unitil Corporation, (www.unitil.com), a provider of natural gas and electricity to customers in New England, is preparing for a major winter snowstorm to impact the region Thursday night and into Friday.
According to the most recent forecasts, as much as 6-12 inches of snow is possible in all regions, with the highest volume of wet snow possible in the Concord NH area. This snow is forecasted to be heavy and wet enough to cause damage to trees and impact electric infrastructure.
“When a winter storm approaches, snow consistency is a crucial piece of information we look for in the forecast,” Unitil Media Relations Manager Alec O’Meara said. “Wet snow can stick to trees and branches like cold oatmeal, and wet snow in the volume forecasted has the potential to cause outages. A change-over to rain will provide relief in some areas, but we are preparing for an event with the potential to have a high impact.”
Currently, Unitil has secured additional crew resources to respond to outages and plans to open a regional Emergency Operations Center in Concord, New Hampshire in response to the storm. Unitil will continue to monitor the track and intensity of the storm and will be prepared to escalate its response if warranted.
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.
We recommend our customers remain similarly prepared by checking and making an inventory of the following items:
- Flashlights and fresh batteries
- A battery-operated radio and clock
- Bottled water, canned foods and a manual can opener
- A list of important phone numbers and a car charger for cell phones if applicable
- A first aid kit.
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.
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 the following toll-free numbers:
- For the NH Seacoast Area: 1-800-582-7276
- For the NH Capital Area: 1-800-852-3339
- For Massachusetts: 1-888-301-7700
You can also report outages online at http://www.unitil.com/report-outage.
