Power Restoration FAQ

When the power goes out, we expect it to be restored within a few hours. But when a major storm or natural disaster causes widespread damage, extended outages may result. Our line crews work long, hard hours to restore service safely to the greatest number of members in the shortest time possible.

Extended Outage FAQ

First, Crawford Electric will work around the clock until service is restored, although daylight hours are needed for most activities. Safety of personnel and the public will remain our highest priority. Restoration priorities include:

Assessing the overall system and repairing power plants, major lines and substations that carry power from plants to communities.
Restoring power to key services essential to community safety, health and welfare - such as hospitals, police, fire, communications and water, sanitary and transportation providers.
Making repairs to electrical facilities that will return service to the largest number of customers in the shortest period of time, then the next largest number and so on until power is returned to everyone.

Crawford Electric will provide service restoration updates to a variety of media outlets to keep everyone informed of our progress.

Our metering and substation monitoring systems alert us to power problems, although we do rely on members to report their individual outages. We make an initial damage assessment of our system by observation. These initial observations help us understand the repairs that may need to be made to key facilities like transmission lines, substations and main power lines before we can begin the restoration process for members.

One of our top priorities will be to clear, but leave on-site, trees and debris that have damaged electrical equipment and are preventing service restoration. Members should not attempt to remove or trim foliage within 10 feet of a power line. If a tree or tree limbs have fallen on a power line or pulled it down, do not attempt to get close to the line. Call Crawford Electric at (800) 677-2667 and report the damage. Our crews will do what's required to help re-establish the grid and restore power; debris clean-up during outage situations is the landowner's responsibility.

Fuses or circuit breakers in your home could have tripped and halted power, tree limbs could have fallen on the line serving your home, fuses on the transformer that serves your home may have tripped or could be damaged, and the primary line feeding the transformer could be damaged. It's also possible that your neighbors are connected to a different main feeder power line or substation that had less severe damage.

You should make plans now on how you could handle extended time without electric service. A portable generator may be an option; or you could make arrangements to relocate temporarily. Call your local emergency management office if you or anyone you know has special needs in case of evacuation. Look under "county government" in your phone directory, or call directory assistance.

Once service is restored, we make every effort to keep it on; however, as we repair other parts of our system, some interruptions may occur. If your lights come on then go off again, that's a sign that restoration crews are at work. For this reason, please wait a while before turning on your appliances or sensitive electronics when your lights first come back on.

Attention members:

Power Restoration FAQ

Extended Outage FAQ

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Attention members:

Extended Outage FAQ

What are Crawford Electric's priorities for service restoration?

Do politicians, employees, directors or other important individuals get special attention?

How does Crawford Electric know who has lost service and what repairs are needed?

How will fallen trees near power lines be handled?

Why would Crawford Electric crews pass my house without repairing anything?

My neighbors have power. Why am I still in the dark?

My family has medical needs that require electricity. What should we do?

Will Crawford Electric fix problems with my home's wiring or between my meter and my home?

If my lights come on, can I expect them to stay on?

Are there some general expectations regarding how long restoration might take following a severe storm? What kind of situations could prolong the effort?

How long is my food safe in the refrigerator and freezer?

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