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Power restored for majority of Columbus AEP customers following emergency outage

The energy company said they expect the repairs will allow the power grid in Columbus to operate as it normally would, even as temperatures rise.

COLUMBUS, Ohio — AEP Ohio said overnight crews worked to restore power to customers in Columbus who were impacted by an emergency outage.

The energy company says they are continuing to monitor the system’s performance and are asking customers to reduce any unnecessary electric usage between peak hours of noon and 7 p.m. to help reduce the potential of further emergency outages.

The energy company said its system was impacted by severe storms Monday night, which knocked out some of its large transmission lines.

Due to the extreme heat on Tuesday, some of the remaining lines became overloaded, causing the company to take customers offline throughout the day to protect the system and reduce the risk of longer, widespread outages, according to AEP Ohio.

At Tuesday’s 9 p.m. peak, AEP Ohio says nearly 250,00 customers across the state were without power, including 170,000 in central Ohio.

In an update Wednesday evening, AEP Ohio said crews had made significant progress repairing damage to the transmission lines which will allow them to begin restoring power to substations and customers in the early morning hours.

The energy company said they expect the repairs will allow the power grid in Columbus to operate as it normally would, even as temperatures rise.

A new outage unrelated to the storms impacted some customers in the Clintonville area. AEP Ohio says the outage was the result of a piece of equipment that needs to be repaired.

AEP Ohio says the forecast for Thursday includes high temperatures and the possibility of severe weather and they have crews ready to work on any outages that might occur.

Below is a list of information provided by AEP Ohio:

RESTORATION PROCESS

Essential services such as hospitals, fire and police stations and water treatment plants are our top priority. Damaged main lines are also being repaired to restore power to the largest number of customers. Crews then work to energize clusters of homes and businesses.

Once the main lines have been restored, crews then focus on restoring power to individual homes and businesses. This step often takes the most time as each repair affects only a few customers.

Read here for more about our restoration process.

DAMAGE & REPAIRS

Homeowners are responsible for electrical equipment attached to their houses. If any equipment was damaged during the windstorm, it’s important to contact a licensed electrician to make repairs before AEP Ohio can safely restore power.

Learn more about the responsibilities of a property owner and AEP Ohio here.

STAY CONNECTED

Updated restoration times will be shared as soon as they are available. Customers can receive the latest alerts and information by:

  • Downloading the AEP Ohio mobile app: AEPOhio.com/App
  • Signing up for text alerts: AEPOhio.com/Alerts
  • Visiting AEPOhio.com/OutageMap
  • Following AEP Ohio on Facebook and Twitter

 SAFETY REMINDERS

  • Never touch any downed wires or anything they may be touching. Please call us or 911 to report wires down.
  • Please refrain from clearing tree debris from roadways as energized downed wires may be hidden under the vegetation.
  • Do not attempt to remove tree limbs or debris within 10 feet of a power line.
  • Stay away from any downed wires and report any hazards through the AEP Ohio mobile app, call 911 or AEP Ohio at (800) 672-2231.
  • For the health and safety of AEP Ohio crews, please stay at least 6 feet away from our employees, vehicles and equipment.
  • Limbs, leaves and other objects moved by the wind could hide downed wires. Investigate your surroundings before trying to clean up any debris.
  • Notify AEP Ohio if you’re using a generator. This protects you and our lineworkers as they work to restore power.
  • Unplug major appliances to protect them when power is restored. 

To see a full list of AEP outages, click here. To see outages with South Central Power, click here. To see FirstEnergy outages, click here.

RELATED: Columbus opens cooling centers as temperatures are expected to hit high 90s

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