The safety of our customers, communities and crews is paramount to us, and we are taking proactive steps to prepare for this week’s upcoming winter storm. We have fully staffed our operation centers to ensure there are enough boots on the ground to respond to outages quickly and safely during this Thanksgiving holiday.

Beginning Wednesday, a winter storm will enter our region bringing heavy rain, possible isolated thunderstorms and heavy snowfall in mountain areas. This significant storm is expected to persist through Friday. Our meteorology team has been closely monitoring this storm system and will continue to provide weather reports to our field crews, public safety partners and the public, so we can be as prepared as possible.

We are taking every precaution to avoid weather-related outages. Some of the proactive measures we are taking to weather the storm include:

• Increasing inventory and equipment at operations centers.
• Supplying each operation center with floodwater removal equipment, such as pumping trucks, to help remove water in our underground facilities, if necessary.

With inclement weather comes difficult and dangerous driving conditions. During storms, our operations centers often see an increase in number of cars hitting power poles and transformers, which can cause outages. Please drive safely in rainy, windy or snowy conditions, and please use caution if you see our crews working.

Important safety tips to remember during storms

Severe storms can create dangerous conditions that may impact our electrical equipment in your community. To ensure the safety of you and your family, please follow the below tips in the event of a major storm.

• If you see a downed power line, call 911 and SDG&E immediately at 800-611-SDGE (7343). Always assume that power lines are energized and do not touch them.
• Take extra precautions by staking trees to the ground because they can more easily fall over if the ground is oversaturated with water. If a branch or tree falls on a power line, do not try to remove it. Call SDG&E immediately to report the situation.
• Do not rely on candles during a power outage as they pose a significant fire hazard. Instead, use a flashlight. Also, unplug any large appliances and sensitive equipment to avoid any power surges once power has been restored.
• If you are dependent on electrically-operated medical equipment, please be sure to make prior arrangements for backup power in the case of an outage.

For additional outage preparedness tips and the latest information on power outages visit sdge.com/outage-center.