The Enlightener

September 2004

North Carolina Electric Cooperatives Provide Vital Link in State's Amber Alert Program

North Carolina’s Touchstone Energy cooperatives have joined the state’s Amber Alert program and will provide the network with eyes and ears in rural North Carolina.

“The electric cooperatives of North Carolina deploy approximately 1,400 linemen, field technicians, and engineers in the communities every day,” said Nelle Hotchkiss, senior vice president of corporate relations for North Carolina Association of Electric Cooperatives. “Many times, they’re working in the most remote parts of the state, places where police patrols don’t often come by. When we dispatch an Amber Alert, crews in 93 of the state’s 100 counties will be on the lookout.”

“Blue Ridge Electric and our heating fuels subsidiary, Blue Ridge Energies, is proud to participate in this extremely worthy program,” said Doug Johnson, chief executive officer. “Our cooperative maintains over 7,000 miles of line so we are a constant presence in our communities. Our Blue Ridge Energies drivers are also constantly in the field. That will be a benefit if an Amber Alert search should be conducted in this area,” he said. “While it’s unfortunate that a program such as this is needed, the reality in today’s world is that Amber Alert is a necessity. We are happy to join the effort,” Johnson added.

The Amber Alert program is designed to safely recover missing children who are in danger of serious injury or death. When an Amber Alert is dispatched by law enforcement, electric cooperative personnel will then relay the alert instantly to personnel in the field via pagers.

The addition of such a wide geographic distribution of personnel should prove a major asset to the state’s Amber Alert system. Time is precious during abduction. A recent U.S. Department of Justice report determined that in 40 percent of 115 juvenile abductions studied, the child was murdered usually within 24 hours of abduction.

The North Carolina Amber Alert System was first activated in June 2002 and resulted in a Franklin County infant being returned unharmed from a baby sitter who abducted the child and transported it to another county.

Inclusion in the Amber Alert program is a part of the 60-year history of North Carolina’s Touchstone Energy cooperatives’ commitment to its communities.

Members Only News
-For Members of Blue Ridge Electric

"Blinks" Can Signal a Properly Working Electrical System

We often hear the question “what causes my lights to blink?” The utility network is subject to certain short-term losses of power. Blue Ridge Electric takes all possible measures to prevent these occurrences and to minimize the effects to our members. Blinking lights are a result of momentary outages that occur when some type of disturbance exists on the power line. This could be a lightning strike, an automobile striking a pole, or when a squirrel or tree branch comes into contact with an energized line.

When lights blink, it is an indication that the cooperative’s equipment is operating properly. If a fault or short circuit happens on a power line, a device called an “oil circuit recloser” (OCR) opens to stop it, then quickly closes back. Although the process is quick – and usually temporary – it may cause your lights to blink, making it necessary to reset digital clocks and appliances with digital displays.

The OCR is essentially a breaker, functioning much like a breaker in the electrical panel in your home. It permits power to continue flowing through the line with only a brief interruption of service – rather than causing an extended power outage. If the short circuit continues, the OCR will operate or ‘trip’ three times before eventually stopping the flow of electricity and causing a power outage. This process protects the lines from damage, cutting off power to the affected section of the line and isolating the problem until it can be repaired.

Use Battery Back-Up

Although the weather and nature’s creatures are beyond our control, cooperative members can lessen the effects and inconvenience of “blinks” when they occur. When purchasing small appliances and digital clocks consider a model with battery backup.

You may also want to consider installing an uninterrupted power supply (UPS) system for your computer or other electronic devices whose “memory” would be lost with a power interruption.

Photo_CEO Johnson The Perspective

An Editorial by Chief Executive Officer Doug Johnson
Transmission Upgrades

Power reliability is consistently ranked as the top priority our members have for Blue Ridge Electric. Our mission reflects this goal as we strive to provide reliable power at an affordable cost to our members in northwest North Carolina.

As we come toward the end of our second year of planned transmission upgrade projects that we announced in 2002, I want to update you on the progress made this year toward our power reliability goal.

Four major projects were planned for this year, all of which benefit the entire service area in Alleghany County and the eastern portion of Ashe County. While our ongoing strategy to upgrade various transmission lines benefits each and every member in all of our service area, the four projects this year build on the work that was completed last year in Watauga, Caldwell, and Ashe counties.

Already completed this year is the upgrade in Shatley Springs and the South Sparta-to-Glade Valley line. Currently in progress is the Ore Knob-to-Ellis project. By the end of this year, the Ellis-to-Sparta upgrade is scheduled for completion. These upgrades benefit some 11,000 members, involve upgrading 55 miles of transmission line, and impact seven area substations.

What this ultimately means to members is higher reliability during periods of severe weather or when other factors create higher load demands that strain our system.

While our electric system has served members well for many years, much of our system was built over 40 years ago. Aging of the facilities as well as a growing number of households and commercial and industrial businesses across our service area led to the need for recent system upgrades in order to continue providing highly reliable power.

Our goal is to maintain our system and plan ahead so that we fulfill the power needs of our membership, now and in the future. We’ll keep you informed about our major transmission projects through this newsletter and we will be contacting you directly if your property is in an area of the work projects. We strive to keep our members informed and we want you to be assured our main goal is to provide the most reliable power with the greatest care and concern for you, our member-owners.

Consumer Awareness:

Why Your Checks Will Clear Faster

As a courtesy to our members, Blue Ridge Electric wants to make you aware of a new federal law called Check 21 that will cause your checks to clear faster at all banking institutions. Check 21 goes into effect October 28, 2004, and is designed to improve check collection systems across the country by automating the check procedures banks use.

Among the effects of Check 21 is that funds will be deducted from bank accounts quicker than in years past. What this means to you as a consumer is that you’ll want to make sure you have sufficient funds in your bank account to cover all checks you write, the moment you write one. This is necessary to protect your credit because checks are clearing faster—sometimes within moments of a transaction. Bouncing a check will be likely if you don’t have sufficient funds as you write a check.

Blue Ridge Electric is making you aware of Check 21 to help inform you about why checks written to the cooperative and other businesses may be clearing faster. If you’d like more information about Check 21 and how it may affect you, contact your local bank or visit http://www.consumerlaw.org/initiatives/check21.shtml.

Call Before You Dig. . . for your safety and to avoid power disruptions, we will locate under-ground lines.

Published monthly by Blue Ridge Electric Membership Corporation for its 52,191 member-owners.