Unitil Corporation, (unitil.com), a provider of natural gas and electricity to customers in New England, will open its System Emergency Operations Center today to coordinate response efforts as Tropical Storm Henri passes through the region.
"Crews are prepped and will be ready to go as Henri passes through the area, with a focus on helping keep roads clear and the public safe."
Alec O'Meara, Media Relations Manager
According to the most recent forecast, Tropical Storm Henri is expected to weaken after making landfall in southern New England. Locally, heavy rains and wind gusts approaching 45 miles per hour are possible in Unitil’s service area tonight and into tomorrow, with higher gusts possible in Unitil’s Massachusetts territory and in coastal areas. Such winds have the potential to cause outages on the system, as otherwise healthy trees and branches may be brought down on lines, causing damage. Additionally, flash flooding may occur in some interior areas, causing damage and impacting regional travel.
Unitil has proactively secured additional third party crews to bolster resources and will be working with first responders to ensure public safety while restoring power where conditions allow.
“We are expecting a long duration event, with hazardous conditions possible in our region for an extended period,” Unitil Media Relations Manager Alec O’Meara said. “Crews are prepped and will be ready to go as Henri passes through the area, with a focus on helping keep roads clear and the public safe.”
We recommend our customers prepare while time allows, follow the local guidance from public safety officials regarding travel, and 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.
The windy conditions have the potential to take wires to the ground. 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 unitil.com/map.
Customers experiencing outages should call 1-888-301-7700.
You can also report outages online at unitil.com/report-outage.
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.
