Be Prepared: Outages May be Extended Due to Continued Ice, High Winds in Mountains

Report Outages to Powerline: 800-448-2383

Lenoir, North Carolina (December 25, 11 a.m. update) - Line technician crews are responding to power outages totaling more than 21,000 in the mountains and foothills but officials with Blue Ridge Electric Membership Corporation say that an extended outage situation could result from continuing icy weather and high winds that are damaging power lines. Crews are also working to help remove fallen trees blocking roads and delaying access to outage locations.

Members with special medical or life support needs may want to contact their local emergency management office for assistance if needed.

All Blue Ridge Electric line crews, engineers and other staff are continuing power restoration work and are being assisted by neighboring cooperatives EnergyUnited and Union Power as well as crews from Pike Corporation and Carter Utility Services. The cooperative offices are also staffed with employees taking phone calls from members.

Members should call Powerline to report outages at 1-800-448-2383. The cooperative also reminds the public that downed power lines are a safety hazard and should be avoided since they can still be energized even when on the ground. Report downed power lines by calling Blue Ridge Electric at 1-800-451-5474.

The current outage breakdown follows:
Watauga County: 12,922 members are without power, with 4,300 concentrated in the Sherwood community where a substation has been affected, with other affected locations scattered across various locations across the county.

Ashe County: 5,678 members with a concentration of those located in the Beaver Creek area and along Hwy 194 and others scattered across the county.

Caldwell County: 1,172 with more than half located in the northern section of the county.

Alleghany County: 1,678 outages are occurring with concentrations on Rocky Top and Frazier Roads and the rest scattered across the county.

To view outage updates, visit www.BlueRidgeEMC.com and click on the "outage map" link located on the lower left hand side of the screen.

Blue Ridge Electric serves some 73,000 members in Caldwell, Watauga, Ashe, Alleghany, Wilkes, Avery and Alexander counties. Find more safety and outage preparation information as well as an outage viewing map at www.BlueRidgeEMC.com.