Unitil Corporation, (Unitil.com), a provider of natural gas and electricity to customers in New England, is preparing for potential impacts from the next storm system that’s expected to bring heavy snow and gusty winds to the region beginning tonight and continuing into Saturday.
According to the most recent forecast, the storm could drop 6-12 inches of snow across all service regions, some of which is expected to transition to a wetter snow that could lead to outages as it has the potential to cling to surfaces and weigh down trees and branches.
In response to the storm, Unitil plans to open its system and regional Emergency Operations Centers beginning at 6 a.m. on Saturday to help coordinate power restoration efforts in the event that outages occur.
At the height of the storm, which is expected overnight tonight and into Saturday morning, forecasters are calling for the possibility of snowfall rates of 1 to 1.5 inches per hour, which could create hazardous driving conditions in some parts of the area and lead to outages caused by motor vehicle accidents.
In addition to the snow, wind gusts of 30 to 35 mph are possible with some gusts up to 40 mph in spots, especially along the New Hampshire Seacoast.
“We’ve seen a very active weather pattern in recent days with several systems impacting our area, but it appears this storm will be the most significant in terms of snowfall amounts. The consistency of the snow is always critical and sometimes just a degree or two can make all the difference between a drier snow and one that’s wetter, heavier and more problematic,” Unitil Media Relations Manager Alec O’Meara said.
Given the potential impacts, Unitil has proactively secured additional third-party crews to bolster resources and assist with any restoration efforts.
Unitil will continue to monitor conditions throughout the event and will be prepared to respond should outages occur from motor vehicle accidents or other issues caused by the storm. We recommend our customers prepare similarly by checking and making an inventory of the following items:
- Flashlights and fresh batteries
- Portable chargers and supplemental batteries for mobile devices
- Bottled water, canned foods and a manual can opener
- A first aid kit
Heavy, wet snow has the potential to damage trees and to take wires to the ground. We urge people to always assume all fallen or dangling cables and wires are energized and stay away. Be sure to avoid wet ground or puddles near a downed line, as 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 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 or report online at unitil.com/report-outage.
