What To Do When The Power Goes Out: A Recovery Guide For Montco

Trees crashed to the ground, roads were closed, power was lost, traffic lights stopped working, and Delaware County declared a state of emergency.

Things were rough in many parts of southeastern Pennsylvania on Tuesday night and Wednesday.

Tuesday was the fifth strongest wind storm on record for Delaware County, officials said, with wind gusts reaching 75 miles per hour.

We’ve compiled a guide, with the help of the East Whiteland Township FIre Department, to help residents with many commonly asked questions.

PECO

Over a hundred thousand customers were still without energy Wednesday evening. Emergency officials were hard at work repairing the damage.

“PECO has notified me that they have activated their Emergency Response Organization and all available personnel are responding to restore service as safely and quickly as possible,” said State Rep. William Adolph (PA-165). “An additional 200 contractors have joined PECO crews to assist with restoration.”

PECO has also requested the assistance of an additional 500 field personnel from Ohio, Kentucky, West Virginia and New York to help restore service, according to Adolph.

PECO hopes to have 95 percent of customers restored to power by Friday, according to the Delaware County Council.

Officials ask that residents do not call 9-1-1 if they need to report an outage, but to instead call PECO at: (800) 841-4141.

Verizon

Verizon service is not available in many parts of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware. Landline calls from cellphones are getting a busy signal, including calls to 911.

However, texting to 9-1-1 has been enabled in Chester County, thanks to the Chester County Department of Emergency Services.

Residents should expect reduced cell coverage and increased circuit loads resulting in failed or dropped calls. If possible, use a land line.

Generators

Fire officials are reminding residents to exercise caution with power generators.

Per the East Whiteland Township Fire Department:

Specifically, make sure you have it placed in an open well-ventilated (i.e. not inside) area away from doors, windows, and vents that could allow deadly Carbon Monoxide (CO) to come indoors. Remember that you cannot smell or see CO. Even if you can’t smell exhaust fumes, you may still be exposed to CO. If you start to feel sick, dizzy, or weak while using a generator, get to fresh air immediately and call 9-1-1. Please be sure to follow the instructions that come with your generator, and before refueling the generator, turn it off and let it cool down. Gasoline spilled on hot engine parts could ignite.

Road Closures

Dozens of roads have been closed through Chester and Delaware Counties due to downed trees and wires.

For a constantly updated look at all current road closures, see this map.

Other Issues

The radio transmitter in Chester County is off the air, according to the National Weather Service in Mount Holly.

If there is damage to your property, officials urge residents to take a picture prior to moving the debris, and to remember to never touch wires.

Photo courtesy of the East Whiteland Fire Department.