SCE Crews Ready as Winter Storm Moves Through Southland
Updated March 2 at 9 a.m.
A winter storm is bringing heavy rains and winds to the Southland over the next few days, and Southern California Edison pre-staged extra crews and equipment to prepare for this latest deluge.
The National Weather service is forecasting rain totals of more than an inch for the coast and valleys while the foothills and mountains could get up to three inches. Heavy snow is also forecast for the Sierras.
“Our No. 1 priority is the safety of our customers and employees,” said Jim Cherrie, SCE director of Grid Operations. “Our crews are at the ready in case of any additional outages. We also want to remind our customers to stay away from downed power lines and to call 911 immediately.”
In preparation for the storm system that is moving through our service territory today and tomorrow, SCE pre-staged crews and materials at a number of areas, including Santa Barbara, Ventura and Carpinteria. The utility also prepped extra crews in Shaver Lake where heavy snows are expected. In the event aerial patrols are needed, SCE pre-staged a helicopter from its Air Operations group to the North Coast area.
In addition to activating its incident management team, SCE is working closely with first responders and the counties of Ventura, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino. Extra personnel will be on hand to answer customer service calls. Customers can report or inquire about outages at 800-611-1911 and get the latest information using the SCE outages app at sce.com/outages. They can also stay informed by visiting sce.com/staysafe, twitter.com/sce and facebook.com/sce.
Storm Safety Tips:
- Downed trees and mudslides may have damaged electrical lines. If you come across any downed wires, stay away and call 911.
- Beware during flooding. Just six inches of moving water can knock you down and two feet can sweep your vehicle away.
- Wet yards with puddles on cement or grass can carry electricity. If a line is down in your yard, remain indoors and call 911 immediately.
- Never try to remove a broken tree limb or branch that has come in contact with a power line.
- Make sure you have battery-operated radio and flashlights. Check the batteries to make sure they’re fresh. Use flashlights for lighting during a power outage. Do not use candles because they pose a fire hazard.
- If you use a generator, place it outdoors and plug individual appliances directly into it, using heavy-duty extension cords. Connecting generators directly to household circuits creates “backfeed,” which is dangerous to repair crews.
- When power is out, traffic signals may be out so approach those intersections as four-way stops.
