Early Morning Downpour Brings Flooding and Power Outages

CPS Energy customers feel the effects that much-needed rain brought to our area.

As residents made their morning commute, CPS Energy crews were busy responding to power outages throughout our service area. Lightning strikes, downed wires and blown transformers all contributed to more than 23,000 customers without power before 9 a.m. Currently, there are still around 1,100 customers without power.

“Our crews were proactively positioned throughout the service territory as the storms hit the area,” said Rick Maldonado senior director of customer reliability. “This means we were able to immediately respond to restoring power for our customers. We’re committed to working through the day and evening to get the job done.”

But even as the crews were dispersed across the service territory, they still faced congested roadways, flooding, and road closures due to fallen trees and other obstructions. Crews are working quickly and as safely as possible to restore electricity to everyone affected. For a complete map of current outages or answers to frequently asked questions, please visit cpsenergy.com.

With more rain expected throughout the week, CPS Energy offers the following tips during power outages:

• Avoid downed power lines! Treat all wires as if they are “live” (energized). Report damaged lines immediately to CPS Energy by calling 210-353-HELP (4357).

• Keep at least one light turned on to help you know when power has been restored.

• Keep refrigerator or freezer doors closed to maintain the unit’s temperature. The USDA says a refrigerator will keep food safely cold for up to four hours if unopened. Discard refrigerated, perishable food such as meat, poultry, fish, soft cheeses, milk, eggs, leftovers, and deli items if the power has been out for more than 4 hours.

• Watch our video of CPS Energy crews restoring power this morning. Working along roadways is always dangerous for our crews, but even more when the streets are slick. Be aware and slow down around all first responders and CPS Energy crews.  Watch our video on today’s storm: https://youtu.be/yz7LSk_jdvc.

• Use caution when driving, as traffic signals may be disrupted.

CPS Energy is celebrating its 75th year of City of San Antonio ownership. Established in 1860, we are the nation’s largest municipally owned natural gas and electric company, providing safe and affordable service to 804,000 electric and 343,000 natural gas customers in Greater San Antonio. With our AA+ credit rating, one of the best in the industry, we offer best in class reliability and some of the lowest rates among the top 10 largest U.S. cities. We recognize our role as a community partner and are continuously focused on job creation, economic development and educational investment. Powered by our people, our investment in the community is demonstrated through our employees’ generosity in giving $1.1 million to United Way. We are also committed to investing in clean energy. CPS Energy is among the top public power wind energy buyers in the nation and number one in Texas for solar generation. For more information, visit newsroomp.cpsenergy.com.