Over 2,000 AEP customers without power in Virginia after high winds

Appalachian Power released an update after high winds left more than 58,000 customers without power across its entire service area Saturday evening.

AEP said more than half of customers who lost service as a result of the wind have had power restored. In Virginia, about 2,200 customers are without service, and in West Virginia, nearly 23,000 customers are without service.

Officials said more than 1,000 workers are helping restore power, including 600 line workers, 250 tree removal workers and 150 damage assessors.

AEP provided restoration estimates for customers affected:

• Power is expected to be restored to most Virginia customers, and to customers in most southern West Virginia counties by late Sunday
• Power should be restored by Monday night to customers in Clay, Fayette, Kanawha, Logan and Mingo counties
• In the hardest hit areas of West Virginia the restoration effort is expected to be complete by Tuesday night. This includes parts of Cabell, Jackson, Lincoln, Marshall, Mason, Ohio, Putnam and Wayne counties. Most customers currently without service in these areas will have power restored before this time, and customers are encouraged to view the company’s outage map or sign up for outage alerts for information on their specific outage.

AEP officials said Sunday’s weather is expected to be favorable for service restoration.

Appalachian Power is also reminding customers of the following safety message:

• All downed lines are dangerous — they carry an electric current that can cause serious or even fatal injuries. Stay away to stay alive. If you encounter a fallen wire, keep yourself and others away from it and anything it may be touching, and call 911 and Appalachian Power at 1-800-956-4237 immediately.
• If you use a portable or RV generator, do not plug the generator into your circuit box.
• Additional safety tips are posted at here.

More information on outages can be found by using AEP’s outage map.

Source: WSLS News 10