REC Responds to Widespread Outages Caused by Snow Storm
Fredericksburg, Va. -Rappahannock Electric Cooperative (REC) crews are responding this morning to outages related to the winter storm. Heavy, wet snow and high winds are causing damage to throughout REC’s 22-county service territory.
The weather conditions, including heavy snow and gusty winds, are expected to continue through early afternoon today. As of 11:30 a.m., nearly 70,000 member-owners are without power due to hundreds of separate outage events. As a result, REC expects outages to last beyond today.
REC’s field crews were staged for storm response, and had mobilized equipment and supplies in advance of the storm. Driving conditions remain extremely hazardous. With safety as a top priority, crews are responding to make repairs and restore service as quickly as possible.
REC also has requested mutual-aid assistance from other cooperatives and contractors.
“The safety of our employees and member-owners is always REC’s top priority during this persistent and dangerous snow storm,” said Casey Hollins, Managing Director - Communications and Public Relations.
REC urges our member-owners to stay safe as well.
If you see a downed power line, always assume it is energized and dangerous. Stay at least 10 feet away from the line and anything that might be in contact with it.
Contact REC at 800-552-3904 and call 911 to report downed power lines.
Finally, if you haven’t already, unplug appliances that may have been on when the power outage begin. Those appliances will come back on in the same mode as they were when power was lost.
Even though outages are widespread, REC urges all members to report their power outage. Use the Report Outage tool on myrec.coop or call 800-552-3904. Stay up-to-date on the latest outages affecting REC member-owners on our Outage Map: outagemap.myrec.coop.
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.