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GUC: Prepared for Hanna
September 4, 2008 

Greenville Utilities officials are carefully monitoring the potential path of Tropical Storm Hanna and have implemented their Emergency Management Plan. "GUC is dedicated to providing reliable service, so essentially we prepare for emergencies all year long,” said Ron Elks, GUC’s General Manager/CEO. “As part of our daily operations, we plan for the unexpected and for that reason all of our systems have back-ups and contingencies. Our Emergency Management Plan is designed to quickly mobilize employees to evaluate storm damage and coordinate restoration activities, if necessary.”

Customers are encouraged to visit GUC’s Storm Central and to be prepared by following these tips:

1.    If your power goes out, check to see if the outage includes other houses in your neighborhood. If it hasn't, check your fuse box and circuit breaker panel to see if you can locate the problem. If the neighboring houses are dark too, look to see if there are any trees or branches in the lines, and if there are downed wires, flashes of light or any other sign of trouble.

2.    Don't touch or attempt to move an electric lines or trees or any other obstacles in contact with electric lines. Stay well away from dangerous areas. If a wire falls on your car while you're in it, stay in the car until the wire is removed.

3.    If a power outage, or any type of storm-related emergency occurs, call Greenville Utilities. During regular business hours, call 752‑7166. During evenings or weekends, call 752‑5627. During emergencies, GUC has multiple phones lines set up to handle calls around the clock. Please be patient. Greenville Utilities emergency storm plan is designed to restore service to the largest amount of customers in the quickest amount of time. Primary lines are repaired first, followed by secondary lines serving only a few customers. We also consider medical facilities and individual customers on life-support systems a top priority.

To make the Emergency Storm Plan as efficient as possible, GUC sends out damage assessment teams or "spotters" to determine the type of problem, the proper equipment and crew needed to restore service. Customers shouldn't be alarmed when a Greenville Utilities vehicle drives by without stopping. The sight of that vehicle means help is on the way. “Please be assured that all of our crews are out working around the clock to restore power to everyone as quickly as possible,” said Mr. Elks.

4.    Sometimes tree limbs fall on the wires coming from the pole to your house with such force that the wiring and meter base are pulled from the house. In this case, you must call an electrician to make repairs before GUC can restore your power.

5.    To prevent overloading the system when power is restored, when the power goes out, turn off everything in your home except for one light. If the outage lasts over 60 minutes, turn off your water heater too. In addition, make sure the surface elements on your range have been turned off and that other heat‑producing appliances are off as well. If left on, they can pose a serious fire hazard.

When the light you've left on glows, you'll know power has been restored. Over the next 30‑40 minutes, slowly switch your appliances back on. Leave a porch light on so that GUC repair crews will know when your service has been restored.

For the latest information, visit GUC’s Storm Central.