With high winds and two to four feet of snow due at lake level by Monday morning, Liberty Utilities is alerting Lake Tahoe area residents to expect possible extended power outages. They are asking people to be prepared and not be caught off guard like many were during last week’s storm caused outages.

As of 10:30 a.m. Friday morning, only five customers were without power due to the remoteness of their service. Since initial storms hit January 3 causing severe damage to the Liberty’s infrastructure, crews worked round-the-clock restoring power to thousands of customers using additional contracted crews and helicopters to reach remote areas.

“We are so appreciative of our customers’ understanding and patience as we addressed the worst damage sustained in years,” states Paulette Sproul, Director for Care Operations in California. “While we hope not to experience that type of situation again, we ask customers to plan for possible extended outages,
especially if they live in remote areas.”

Liberty Utilities offers the following advice if your power goes out:

– Report outages and monitor outage information by going to our website, www.libertyutilities.com and click on the Emergencies & Outages link at the top. Outages may also be reported to Liberty Utilities at 1-844-245-6868.
– People should stay away or in their car if they encounter a downed power line.
– Do not approach any downed power lines even if you think they are dead; call 911 to report if they pose an immediate danger.
– If someone in your house is on life support, develop a backup plan.
– Review safety rules for portable generators if you own one.
– Learn how to override your electric garage door opener
– Keep refrigerators and freezers closed to reduce food spoilage.
– If unopened and full, food can last for two days.
– Create an emergency kit that includes a blanket, flashlight, batteries and first aid supplies. Store these items in a water-tight container.

In anticipation of possible damage to wires and power poles as trees and branches fall, Liberty has reached out to the municipalities in their service territory to coordinate road access and prioritize responses based on public safety concerns.

“We appreciate the partnership we had with the first responders and other groups responsible for recovery efforts in the communities we serve,” states Jeff Matthews, Liberty’s Manager of Engineering and Planning. “We’ll continue to work with them on any recovery efforts this weekend.”

Liberty asks that customers go to the website at www.libertyutilities.com to get the latest information available so phone lines can remain available for emergencies only. Customers should click on the Emergencies & Outages link at the top of the homepage, where they will be directed to an outage map as well as emergency messages that will be regularly updated. Liberty’s website is
accessible on mobile devices.