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‘Prepare to be without service overnight’ – Rocky Mountain Power crews working to restore power

Posted at 12:32 PM, Mar 29, 2019
and last updated 2019-03-29 20:14:01-04

UPDATE: As of 6:00 p.m., just under 12,000 customers remain without power across the Salt Lake Valley.

Rocky Mountain Power

Previous updates continue below.

UPDATE: As of 3:30 p.m., Rocky Mountain Power said additional crews from American Fork, Layton and Ogden have been sent to assist in repair work.

Additional crews from Idaho and central Utah have been mobilized to relieve current crews tonight and tomorrow.

The company also said neighborhood distribution lines were damaged rather than main circuits, meaning each repair is restoring power to smaller groups of customers. Around 17,000 customers remain out of service.

Previous story continues below.

SALT LAKE CITY — Widespread power outages are leaving thousands of Rocky Mountain Power customers without electricity Friday, and some may not see their power restored until Saturday.

The outages are attributed to a spring snowstorm that left heavy, wet snow and fallen tree branches along the Wasatch Front.

“Most of the outages are located in the Salt Lake Valley east of I-15, between Emigration Canyon and the Big and Little Cottonwood Canyon. East bench areas that received more snowfall, were particularly affected. Because of the widespread and localized nature of the damage, customers who are out of power now should prepare to be without service overnight. Rocky Mountain Power crews will work around the clock until all customers are restored,” a Rocky Mountain Power news release issued Friday morning said.

As of 11:30 a.m., the outages continued to affect around 18,000 customers. Rocky Mountain Power has about 110 employees—including troubleshooters, line crews, estimators and tree crews—working on the restoration process.

More information from Rocky Mountain Power:

The company’s website has helpful information about preparing for and responding to power outages.

https://www.rockymountainpower.net/ed/po/or/pfpo.html

How the company manages the restoration process:

https://www.rockymountainpower.net/ed/po/or/wwetrp.html

Rocky Mountain Power also expects that a number of overhead service lines to homes may be damaged. The company will repair these connections, but customers should be aware that meter bases and masts are customer equipment. If these are damaged by a falling tree limb, the customer must contact a qualified electrician for repair before the service line can be re-connected. A diagram and more information is available here:

https://www.rockymountainpower.net/ed/po/or/wwetrp.html

It is helpful for customers to report outages to Rocky Mountain Power’s toll-free outage line, 877-508-5088. Customers can also text OUT to 759677 to report an outage and receive updated information.

As always, please treat all downed wires as live and dangerous. Thank you for your patience as we work to safely restore power as quickly as possible.