Most NOVEC customers back on the power grid

Northern Virginia Electric Cooperative has most of its customers connected to the power grid as the region recovers after Hurricane Sandy’s winds and rain caused widespread power outages this week. At the height of the storm, 32,000 NOVEC customers lost power. As of 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday, all but about 1,400 had electric service restored. Crews will work through the night to get most of these customers reconnected by Thursday night.

“Trees that slapped down power lines and broke utility poles have been our biggest challenge,” states Mike Curtis, vice president of Public Relations. “An enormous tree fell on power lines just today in the Town of Clifton and caused another outage. Similar incidents have caused our outage numbers to bounce around a bit today, but the trend is definitely down.”

Photos on NOVEC’s website show the extensive damage Sandy did to the Co-op’s system from Loudoun County to Stafford County. Some damage is so bad that it may take at least another day to remove trees and replace broken poles.

Curtis says, “NOVEC crews, along with crews from North and South Carolina, and Maryland, are making sure all power lines are repaired and connected. We appreciate everyone’s continued patience. We know how inconvenient extended power outages are for our customers. The NOVEC team will be on the job around the clock until all service is restored.”

Curtis cautions parents about Halloween tonight: “This year, Halloween is dangerous. If you do allow children to go out for Trick or Treat, accompany them and be extra careful. There may still be downed power lines in your neighborhood. If you see a tree or debris on the ground, don’t touch it. It may be covering a power line; all downed lines should be treated as live. Walking on wet ground anywhere near a live line can be fatal. If you see anything suspicious, call NOVEC at 703-335-0500 or 1-888-335-0500 immediately.