Most of the Appalachian Power
customers who remain without power will be restored within a few hours, the company said the afternoon of Nov. 5. It also said isolated areas where damage was most severe may not be restored until Nov. 6. Parts of Fayette, Raleigh and Wyoming counties were still
without power as of Nov. 5.
In a news release, the company also warned that following a large storm, its infrastructure can become compromised and new outages are
possible in some areas because of wind, hanging limbs or other weather
related issues. Customers should report all power outages immediately at
AppalachianPower.com or 1-800-982-4237.
"In the final days of a large restoration effort, crews are usually
handling many single outage cases and addressing new outages that occur
related to storm damage. Crews will continue to clear up these outages
until all work is complete," said Phil Wright, vice president
distribution operations.
The company had more than 57 outages affecting only
one customer. More than
350 line workers and 300 tree trimmers are working in areas where
outages exist.
Company officials are preparing for the next step in the Hurricane
Sandy recovery efforts. Once crews complete restoration in Appalachian
Power's territory, many will be shifted to heavily damaged areas in the
North.
"Appalachian Power will assist other power companies who are working to
restore power to millions of customers. They have come to our aid twice
just this year, and we are returning the favor," Wright said.
Customer outages peaked at 182,000 on Tuesday, Oct. 30, with most of
them occurring in West Virginia. Ninety-five percent of customers were
restored by Sunday afternoon.
"We are grateful for the patience that our customers continue to show,"
Wright said. "Our crews were aided in their work by the efforts of the
Department of Homeland Security and the West Virginia National Guard.
We're very appreciative of the teamwork that has developed following
these large storms," Wright said.
Appalachian Power has 1 million customers in Virginia, West Virginia and Tennessee.
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