EARLY MORNING DOWNPOUR BRINGS POWER OUTAGES AND AREA FLOODING

March 28, 2018 – 7:15 a.m.

Early this morning, storms moved into Greater San Antonio bringing with it heavy downpours, winds and power outages. Fallen trees and branches, along with transformer issues due to lightning and strong winds contributed to widespread power outages. At peak, which occurred at 2:30 a.m., the utility reported that 30,962 customers experienced a power outage. Currently, there are 225 power outages affecting 6,197 customers. The largest concentration of outages is in the utility’s North side region of its service territory.

“We pride ourselves on quick response whenever these storm events happen,” said Rick Maldonado, Senior Director of Customer Reliability. “Our crews are dedicated to getting power restored to everyone affected, this means we will work safely and quickly throughout the day to make sure our customers get their lights back on.”

Prior to the storms arrival, CPS Energy prepared by ensuring materials and restoration crews were both on hand to deploy and respond to the outages. As a result, crews were able to deploy immediately once the storm caused power outages.

Crews face similar challenges as residents during storms such as: congested roadways, flooding and road closures. Access to some areas pose challenges due to fallen trees and other obstructions. Crews are working as quickly and 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.

CPS Energy offers the following tips during power outages:

• Avoid downed power lines! Treat all wires as if they are “live” (energized). Report downed or damaged lines to CPS Energy at (210) 353-HELP (4357), immediately.
• Keep at least one light turned on to help you realize 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 four hours.
• Use caution when driving, as traffic signals may be disrupted.

About CPS Energy

Established in 1860, CPS Energy is the nation’s largest public power, natural gas and electric company, providing safe, reliable, and competitively-priced service to 804,000 electric and 343,000 natural gas customers in San Antonio and portions of seven adjoining counties. Our customers’ combined energy bills rank among the lowest of the nation’s 20 largest cities – while generating $7 billion in revenue for the City of San Antonio for more than seven decades. As a trusted and strong Community partner, we continuously focus on job creation, economic development and educational investment. True to our People First philosophy, we are powered by our skilled workforce, whose commitment to the community is demonstrated through our employees’ volunteerism in giving back to our city and programs aimed at bringing value to our customers. 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 cpsenergy.com.