Winter Storm Blair Update #14
Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025 – 2 p.m.
Situation
Appalachian Power crews are committed to power restoration for all customers impacted by Winter Storm Blair on Monday. Workers are working in frigid temperatures to complete repairs in Virginia’s Franklin and Tazewell counties and West Virginia’s Lincoln, Mercer and Summers counties. As of 2 p.m. Thursday, approximately 7,300 Appalachian Power customers remain without power.
More winter weather is expected to begin Friday morning, with forecasts predicting that much of the Appalachian Power service territory will see snow showers. Appalachian Power’s Storm Response Team is closely monitoring the situation. Company crews, contractors and mutual aid crews are ready to respond should power outages occur.
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 (please note that not all outages are reflected in the charts below):
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Outage Count
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ETR
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Virginia Total
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2,000
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|
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Rocky Mount
|
696
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6 p.m., Jan. 9
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Moneta
|
607
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6 p.m., Jan. 9
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|
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Outage Count
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ETR
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West Virginia Total
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5,300
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|
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Bluefield
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4,239
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11 p.m., Jan. 9
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Storm Restoration Efforts
- More than 100,500 customers were without electricity at the peak on Monday.
- Workers have found 45 miles of downed wire, 140 damaged or broken poles and 105 transformers needing maintenance.
- Approximately 304 locations across the company’s service area need repairs.
- Appalachian Power’s Storm Operations Team continues working with local and state officials to assist in restoration efforts.
- 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 and 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. We often 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 appliances, such as laundry equipment and ovens, until one hour after power has been restored.
Safety
- Stay away from sparking equipment, downed lines or anything they may touch. This goes for children and pets, too.
- Never remove debris that's within 10 feet of a downed 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 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 AppalachianPower.com/Alerts.
- A snapshot of current outages is available anytime by visiting Appalachian Power's Outage Map.
Next Update: Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025 – 7 p.m.