Heavy rain and wind gusts up to 40 mph could impact much of Virginia beginning Thursday evening and continuing into Friday as Tropical Storm Elsa passes through the state. Rappahannock Electric Cooperative (REC) urges member-owners to prepare now for the possibility of storm-related power outages. Crews stand ready to respond to any outages, and REC wants member-owners to prepare as well.
Charge critical electronics such as cell phones before the storm arrives, and make sure your family has a flashlight with batteries and other essentials you may need. For a complete list of emergency items REC recommends, please visitmyrec.coop/stormprep
Other steps you can take now:
- Bookmark REC’s website to report an outage or to find the latest on restoration efforts. You also can sign up to receive Outage Text Alerts:myrec.coop/outagecenter.
- Remember that you can use your smart phone to report an outage atmyrec.coop/out. You also can report an outage in MyREC SmartHub.
- If someone in your home requires electricity for a serious medical condition, consider an alternate location with power that you can rely on during an outage.
“Tropical storms can make last-minute turns that sometimes lead to worse-than-expected impacts,” said Casey Hollins, Managing Director – Communications and Public Relations. “We urge member-owners to take this storm seriously. We stand ready and crews will respond as quickly and safely as possible to restore any power outages.”
REC provides electric service to over 170,000 connections in parts of 22 Virginia counties. With its general office in Fredericksburg, Va., the Cooperative operates and maintains more than 17,000 miles of power lines through its service area, which ranges from the Blue Ridge Mountains to the tidal waters of the Chesapeake Bay. For more information about REC, please visitwww.myrec.coop. Follow REC on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube.