SCE Crews Prepare for Another Atmospheric River
SCE Crews Prepare for Another Atmospheric River
With little reprieve in between the last storms and now, Southern California Edison crews are ready to respond to another atmospheric river bringing several inches of rain to the service area Tuesday and Wednesday.
The National Weather Service is forecasting heavy snow in the mountains while rains in the mid-elevations on top of existing snowpack may create flooding conditions. Moderate-to-heavy rain is expected in lower elevations throughout the service area.
A flood watch is also in effect for the Fresno-Tulare foothills through Wednesday evening. SCE’s Incident Management Team is currently monitoring a substation in Tulare over flooding concerns. SCE crews brought in needed resources to prepare for potential flooding and set up K-rails and sandbags over the weekend. Crews are working to ensure that service is not interrupted to customers by rerouting electricity around that substation.
“We’ve seen a lot of rain this year and more storms are heading this way. Our teams are ready to respond to additional outages and we continue to monitor the Tulare substation,” said Basil Dedman, SCE's incident commander.
SCE is continuing to partner with Pacific Gas & Electric in Northern California where there have been intense storms over the last few weeks. SCE crews are returning today from the most recent mutual assistance effort and are now preparing for the expected rain and snow over the next two days.
SCE reminds customers to never touch or approach a downed wire and to call 911 immediately. Here are some additional safety tips:
- Never try to remove a broken tree limb or branch that has come in contact with a power line.
- Freeze water and transfer it to your refrigerator if the power goes out to keep perishables cold.
- Install surge protectors to help safeguard valuable electronic equipment, such as computers and home entertainment systems.
- If you have an automatic garage door or gate, learn to open it manually (without power).
- Use caution when driving and do not enter any flooded areas.
- Contact your city or county offices of emergency services for flood preparation and sandbag locations.
- Make a safety preparedness plan for your family that includes a list and location of emergency items such as water bottles, flashlights, first-aid kits, extra blankets, etc.
- Be prepared to meet the unique needs of infants and elderly or disabled family members. Also, plan how you will care for any pets.
Customers may report outages at 1-800-611-1911 or online at sce.com/outage-center.