FirstEnergy Corp. utilities continue restoration efforts for customers of Jersey Central Power & Light (JCP&L) who lost power as a result of tropical storm Isaias.
As of Aug. 8, service had been restored to more than 696,000 JCP&L customers — more than 88% of the 788,000 customers impacted by the storm. More than 9000 utility personnel from JCP&L, other FirstEnergy companies, and partner utilities from electric industry mutual assistance organizations continued working around the clock to restore power to about 92,000 JCP&L customers who remained without power.
Utility crews replaced more than 140,000 ft of wire, hundreds of poles and crossarms, and worked through more than 400 closed roads to repair service. The hardest hit areas, as of Aug. 8, were as follows:
- Monmouth County: Fewer than 30,000 customers remained without power of the 291,300 customers served.
- Morris County: Approximately 31,000 customers remained without power of the 202,100 customers served.
- Ocean County: Approximately 4000 customers remained without power of the 25,400 customers served.
- Union County: Approximately 5000 customers remained without power of the 27,200 customers served.
Customers in both the Northern and Central regions were expected to be restored by Aug. 11, 11:30 p.m. To safeguard the health and safety of FirstEnergy employees, contractors, and the public, customers were requested to respect social distancing protocols as utility personnel worked around the clock to restore all power outages caused by tropical storm Isaias.
The following tips were issued to customers:
- During severe weather, customers without power are encouraged to call 1-888-LIGHTSS (1-888-544-4877) to report their outage or click the Report Outage link on www.firstenergycorp.com.
- Customers should immediately report downed wires to their utility or their local police or fire department.
- Customers should never go near a downed power line, even if they think it is no longer carrying electricity. Extra caution should be exercised in areas where downed wires may be tangled in downed tree branches or other debris.
- Water and ice are available to customers without service because of the storm. For a list of locations, visit here and click on water and ice locations.
- Emergency power generators offer an option for customers needing or wanting uninterrupted service. However, to ensure the safety of the home's occupants as well as that of utility company employees who may be working on power lines in the area, the proper generator should be selected and installed by a qualified electrician. When operating a generator, the power coming into the home should always be disconnected. Otherwise, power from the generator could be sent back onto the utility lines, creating a hazardous situation for utility workers.
For more information, visit here.
