Ameren Illinois Utilities Assign Additional Resources to Southern Illinois to Help Restore Power after Major Ice Storm
February 13 2008 - 10:35AM
PR Newswire (US)
CARBONDALE, Ill. and MARION, Ill., Feb. 13 /PRNewswire/ -- The
Ameren Illinois Utilities have more than 800 people dedicated to
restoring power to thousands of AmerenCIPS customers affected by
the ice storm that struck Southern Illinois Monday night. That
includes nearly 480 Ameren Illinois Utility workers and outside
contractor personnel from across the state, as well as more than
320 tree trimmers, management and field checking workers, assigned
to the restoration effort. While the company has dedicated
significant resources into the area, difficult weather conditions
mean that the majority of customers will be restored on Thursday.
Some single outages may extend into Friday. Since 9 p.m., Tuesday,
the company has restored power to approximately 10,000 AmerenCIPS
customers. As of 9 a.m. today, approximately 7,900 AmerenCIPS
customers in Southern Illinois are still without power. Areas
experiencing the most significant damage include Anna, Carbondale,
Marion, Harrisburg and surrounding communities. John Barud, manager
of the Ameren Illinois Utilities' Division VI, says a heavy coating
of ice remaining on trees and power lines has caused new outages to
continue to occur, hampering restoration efforts. The Ameren
Illinois Utilities warn all residents to stay away from downed
power lines, which may still be energized. "Our top priority is the
safety of our coworkers, contractors and the public," Barud says.
"People can help by making sure they report any downed power lines
and by warning others to stay away from these lines until repair
crews can get there. Residents should stay away from brush and
downed trees which may hide downed wires." Customers can call
AmerenCIPS at 1-888-789-2477 to report downed wires. The Ameren
Illinois utilities serve 1.2 million electric and more than 840,000
natural gas customers in a 43,700-square-mile area of Illinois.
DATASOURCE: Ameren Illinois Utilities CONTACT: Erica Abbett of
Ameren Illinois Utilities, +1-618-236-4329 Web site:
http://www.ameren.com/
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