No Power Outages for Blue Ridge Electric Members
For Immediate Release
Contact: Renee Whitener, Director of Corporate Communications, Blue Ridge Electric Membership Corporation, (828) 758-2383 ext. 3213; Pager:1-800-471-1323; or E-mail: Renee Whitener
Lenoir, North Carolina (January 26, 2004) – Members of Blue Ridge Electric Membership Corporation enjoyed the snow and their power during the winter weather storm that began Sunday.
No storm-related outages had been reported as of 6:30 a.m. Monday for Blue Ridge Electric’s 66,000 members in northwest North Carolina. However, electric cooperative officials continue to keep a close eye on a second shot of winter precipitation expected to produce freezing rain today in western North Carolina. Freezing rain is of particular concern because it accumulates on trees and branches and can cause them to fall on power lines.
To ensure safety, if people see a downed power line they should report its location to Blue Ridge Electric or call 911. Under no circumstances should people approach or drive over downed power lines due to serious injury or possible death that could result.
Line crews, customer service employees, and other support staff remain on alert status and are prepared to respond quickly if outages should begin occurring.
The fastest way for members to report an outage is to call Powerline, the cooperative’s automated outage reporting system, at 1-800-448-2383.
Blue Ridge Electric serves more than 66,000 members in Caldwell, Watauga, Ashe, Alleghany, Wilkes, and Alexander counties. Its subsidiary, Blue Ridge Energies, provides propane, heating fuels, and commercial gasoline from offices in Lenoir, Boone, Hickory, and West Jefferson.
