Ameren Illinois Utilities Work to Restore Service in Jacksonville and Other Central Illinois Communities
December 10 2007 - 12:07PM
PR Newswire (US)
Some Customers May Need To Make Repairs To Electric Service
Entrances Before Power Can Be Restored to Their Homes PEORIA, Ill.,
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. and DECATUR, Ill., Dec. 10 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/
-- The Ameren Illinois utilities have assigned nearly 150 Ameren
employees as well as more than 270 workers from other contracting
companies to restore electrical service in Jacksonville and other
Central and West Central Illinois communities. Additional Ameren
and external workers will arrive later in the day. The weekend ice
storm left ice coatings of up to 1-inch, resulting in a loss of
service for customers in Menard, Cass, Morgan, Brown, Scott, Logan,
Calhoun, Jersey and neighboring counties. Crews worked through
Sunday and into night, restoring service to several thousand
customers. Jacksonville was the hardest hit area. As of 9:40 a.m.
today, about 7,500 customers are without electrical service in the
Jacksonville area. About 2,500 customers remain without service
primarily in Logan, Scott, Calhoun and Jersey counties. Ameren
Illinois utilities estimate all outages will be restored to service
by midnight today unless there is further damage due to icing, wind
or other weather conditions. Updates will be provided later today.
"We appreciate our customers' patience during these extended
outages," said Bill Prebil, vice president, Ameren Illinois
utilities. "Our crews and contractors are working hard and safely
to restore service as promptly as possible. We are working closely
with city officials and emergency response personnel to coordinate
restoration efforts and ensure customer safety." Ameren Illinois
warns all residents to stay away from downed power lines, which may
still be energized. Residents should stay away from brush and
downed trees which may hide downed wires. If residents see downed
wires, they should immediately call their Ameren Illinois utility
(AmerenCIPS - 1-888-789-2477; AmerenIP - 1-800-755-5000, and
AmerenCILCO - 1-888-672-5252) or "911." Due to the ice storm's
extensive damage to the electric service entrances at customers'
homes, the services of an electrical contractor may be required to
reattach or repair customer-owned facilities, such as the meter
base, weatherhead or point of attachment. See
http://www.ameren.com/ for a diagram showing this arrangement. If a
customer notices damage to these facilities, the customer should
contact an electrical contractor to make repairs so utility workers
can safely restore service. Not repairing this damage could delay
restoration to the customer's home. The Ameren Illinois utilities
serve 1.2 million electric customers and more than 840,000 natural
gas customers in a 43,700-square-mile area of Illinois. NOTE TO
EDITORS and NEWS DIRECTORS: Ameren offers these tips for your
safety and for coping with power outages: -- Watch out for downed
wires. If you see a fallen or sagging wire, assume that it is still
energized and dangerous. Electric power lines can carry power even
after being knocked to the ground. Stay away and warn others to do
the same. -- Pull some plugs. Turn off or disconnect the
refrigerator, freezer, television, air conditioner and other major
appliances that would go on automatically when the power is
restored. This precaution will avoid overloading a circuit when
power comes back on -- and the chance of a second interruption.
After power is restored, turn them on one at a time. -- Keep your
food cold. Resist the urge to peek in on the refrigerator and
freezer. Food will stay cold or frozen longer if the appliance
stays closed. -- Flip a switch. Turn one or two light switches on
so you will know when your service is restored. DATASOURCE: Ameren
Illinois utilities CONTACT: Erica Abbett, +1-618-236-4329, or
Natalie Hemmer, +1-217-424-7541, or Neal Johnson, +1-309-677-5284,
or Leigh Morris, +1-217-535-5228, all for Ameren Illinois utilities
Web site: http://www.ameren.com/
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