Atlantic City Electric Braces for Hurricane Sandy

Officials with Atlantic City Electric said they are  "closely monitoring" Hurricane Sandy, and preparing accordingly. 

Frank Tedesco, a spokesperson for Atlantic City Electric,  told Patch that the company has already begun contacting mutual assistance crews, and has been working with local offices of emergency management and the Board of Public Utilities to prepare for the storm.

Atlantic City Electric employees are also on notice that they may have to perform "secondary duties," such as fielding customer calls, if the storm affects this area. 

Tedesco emphasized the importance of staying away from downed wires, and also avoiding crews working in the streets in the event of outages. He advised people to have an emergency management kit prepared, including flashlights, as well as an inflated cooler and a telephone with a cord.

He said anyone wishing to report an outage to Atlantic City Electric should call 1-800-833-7476. 

Meanwhile, officials with JCP&L are taking similar precautions. 

"As a precaution, JCP&L has placed employees on alert, and is prepared to mobilize employees and resources where needed if Hurricane Sandy develops into a threat to the region," Ron Morano, a spokesperson for JCP&L, said in a prepared statement.

JCP&L officials said they plan to  provide updates via Twitter at @JCP_L, and on Facebook, www.facebook.com/JCPandL.

For updated information on JCP&L's preparation efforts for the hurricane, current outages, FirstEnergy's storm restoration process and tips for staying safe, go to www.firstenergycorp.com or www.jcp-l.com.