Winter Storm Blair Update #5 – Appalachian Power battles icy conditions to assess damage
Monday, Jan. 6, 2025 – 2 p.m.
Situation
As expected, Winter Storm Blair brought freezing rain, ice and snow to Appalachian Power’s territory early Monday morning, causing widespread damage and power outages across its service area. The dedicated workforce grew to 5,500 strong on Monday when mutual aid crews arrived from AEP sister companies AEP Ohio and Indiana & Michigan Power. The company expects the potential for additional outages throughout the day due to heavy ice accumulation.
Outages
- At 2 p.m., approximately 98,475 Appalachian Power customers are without power, including 54,200 in Virginia and 44,200 in West Virginia. Areas with the heaviest damage include Amherst, Bedford, Campbell and Franklin counties in Virginia and Lincoln, Clay, Mercer, Summers and Wayne counties in West Virginia.
- At the peak, just over 100,500 customers were without power.
Restoration Estimates
The estimated times of restoration (ETRs) are when Appalachian Power expects to have 90% or more customers restored. Approximate outage counts and ETRs are below:
|
|
Outage Count
|
ETR
|
|
Virginia Total
|
54,194
|
|
|
Wytheville
|
902
|
11 p.m., Jan. 6
|
|
Floyd
|
2,964
|
11 p.m., Jan. 7
|
|
Pulaski
|
923
|
11 p.m., Jan. 7
|
|
Bluefield
|
14,622
|
11 p.m., Jan. 8
|
|
Christiansburg
|
4,563
|
11 p.m., Jan. 8
|
|
Glen Lyn
|
1,092
|
11 p.m., Jan. 8
|
|
Woodlawn
|
3,580
|
11 p.m., Jan. 8
|
|
Roanoke
|
6,584
|
11 p.m., Jan. 8
|
|
Fieldale
|
3,704
|
11 p.m., Jan. 8
|
|
Stuart
|
1,128
|
11 p.m., Jan. 8
|
|
Rocky Mount
|
6,099
|
6 p.m., Jan. 9
|
|
Lovingston
|
2,085
|
6 p.m., Jan. 9
|
|
Lynchburg
|
11,948
|
6 p.m., Jan. 9
|
|
Rocky Mount
|
6,099
|
6 p.m., Jan. 9
|
|
Moneta
|
7,894
|
6 p.m., Jan. 9
|
|
|
Outage Count
|
ETR
|
|
West Virginia Total
|
44,283
|
|
|
Huntington
|
65
|
9 p.m., Jan. 6
|
|
Wayne
|
1,378
|
9 p.m., Jan. 6
|
|
Milton
|
875
|
6 p.m., Jan. 7
|
|
Hamlin
|
5,504
|
6 p.m., Jan. 7
|
|
Charleston
|
5,907
|
8 p.m., Jan. 8
|
|
Glasgow
|
108
|
8 p.m., Jan. 8
|
|
Walgrove
|
6,188
|
8 p.m., Jan. 8
|
|
Beckley
|
4,410
|
8 p.m., Jan. 8
|
|
Hico
|
424
|
8 p.m., Jan. 8
|
|
Pineville
|
744
|
8 p.m., Jan. 8
|
|
Logan
|
1,568
|
8 p.m., Jan. 8
|
|
Madison
|
1,226
|
8 p.m., Jan. 8
|
|
Williamson
|
809
|
8 p.m., Jan. 8
|
Storm Restoration Efforts
- Over 5,500 personnel across the company’s footprint are dedicated to power restoration.
- The storm system left behind hazardous road conditions, which can delay travel for Appalachian Power crews and mutual aid crews traveling to the service area to help restore power.
- The company’s Storm Operations Team continues working with local and state officials to assist in restoration efforts.
- Line mechanic crews from AEP Ohio, Alabama, Indiana & Michigan Power, North Carolina and South Carolina are working alongside Appalachian Power employees and contractors.
- Appalachian Power’s generation facilities follow specific protocols and procedures to combat the expected winter weather and ensure safe and reliable operations across our entire generation fleet.
Hydro Operations
- With cold temperatures expected to impact our territory throughout the week, PJM has notified Appalachian Power it may need to increase power generation at its hydroelectric plants to maintain the reliability of the regional electric grid.
- Recreational users downstream of Claytor and Leesville dams should be aware that water levels on the New and Roanoke rivers could rise rapidly starting Wednesday, Jan.8, and continue to fluctuate throughout the week.
- Visit the Smith Mountain Project's website for more information.
Weather
- Extreme cold temperatures can cause line overload problems when trying to restore a large number of customers. In many cases, we must restore large outages in smaller groups, letting the electric load settle before restoring additional customers. Customers with outages can assist by turning off large electric users, such as heaters and water heaters until 15 or more minutes after power has been restored.
How Appalachian Power Restores Power
- In a major power outage, priority is given to restoring circuits that deliver electricity to essential public safety facilities such as hospitals, 911 call centers, water treatment plants, and police and fire stations.
- Next, Appalachian Power will perform repairs to restore electric service to the largest pockets of customers in the shortest amount of time. Sometimes, a single repair can restore service to hundreds or thousands of customers. Appalachian Power will then move on to repair portions of circuits that restore service to smaller pockets of customers. These repairs may restore service to dozens of customers when completed.
- In the final phase, power is restored to individual homes and businesses. This phase of the restoration process can be time-consuming after a significant storm because there are so many of these kinds of repairs.
Safety
- Stay away from sparking equipment or downed lines or anything they may touch. This goes for children and pets too.
- Never remove debris that's within 10 feet of a power line.
- Unplug major appliances to protect them when power comes back on.
- Leave a light switch turned on so you know when power is restored.
- Refuel heaters, lamps and generators outside, and away from any flames or sparks. Wipe up fuel spills immediately.
- Let us know if you're using a generator – this protects you and our line workers as they work to restore power.
- Never operate lanterns, heaters or fuel-fired stoves without proper ventilation.
- Never burn charcoal indoors. It releases poisonous carbon monoxide.
Click here for additional safety tips and here for ways to save energy during low temperatures.
For More Information
Customers can get specific information about the outages affecting their accounts via text message and/or email by subscribing to Appalachian Power outage alerts. To sign up, please visit Appalachian Power alerts.
A snapshot view of current outages is available anytime by visiting Appalachian Power's Outage Map.
Next Update: Monday, Jan. 6, 2025 – 7 p.m.