Snohomish PUD Prepared

The National Weather Service is calling for heavy snowfall over the next two days and strong easterly winds on Wednesday, increasing the likelihood of tree damage and power outages throughout Snohomish County.

Snohomish County PUD has crews and supplies prepared for restoration efforts and will be responding to outages throughout the storm. In the wake of Sunday’s snowfall, the PUD has signed a major emergency declaration, allowing the utility to call in additional crew help from other utilities and contractors.

According to NWS, tonight’s snowfall in Snohomish County is expected to be dense and wet and continue overnight into Wednesday. Strong east to northeast winds are likely to develop Wednesday afternoon and lead to gusts of 35 to 40 mph in Everett and surrounding areas.
“We prepare all year for storms like this and are ready to continue to deploy crews to all points of our service territory in response to outage reports,” said Snohomish PUD CEO/GM John Haarlow. “Our crews and storm support team members have been working hard to restore power after Sunday’s storm and they will continue to work safely and quickly until every customer is back in power.”
Since Sunday’s night’s snowstorm, PUD crews have restored power to nearly 44,000 customers and continue to work in the field on restoration efforts. Tonight’s incoming storm could create new challenges and slow efforts, so customers should prepare for potentially lengthy power outages in sub-freezing conditions.
Customers should charge cell phones and other devices and ensure they have enough food, water, blankets and warm clothes on hand. If they lose power, customers should designate a warmer area with few windows as a primary living area.
Customers who depend on the PUD to power life-sustaining medical equipment should have a Plan B in case of a lengthy outage. There are multiple locations in Snohomish County that provide overnight shelter when temperatures dip below 32 degrees. For more information, visit www.snohd.org/cold.
Customer safety is paramount to the PUD. Customers should never try to heat their home using a gas stove or charcoal grill. Always stay at least 30 feet away from any downed power lines and report to 425-783-1001.
All power outages should be reported to the PUD’s Outage Map at outagemap.snopud.com or to the PUD’s outage line at 425-783-1001. For more information or tips on storm preparedness, visit www.snopud.com/outages.
Due to this week’s snowy conditions, PUD meter readers have not been able to read the meters on their scheduled routes and customers may receive a bill with an estimate of their electricity usage.
The PUD’s billing system calculates customer’s estimated electricity consumption based on previous usage. Once the PUD gains access to the customer’s meter, the actual meter read will be evaluated for an adjustment to the customer’s bill. If you have questions about estimated bills, visit www.snopud.com/meters.
Keep updated on storm restoration efforts on the PUD’s Facebook and Twitter pages.