Winter Storm Preparation
As we head into the weekend, we are closely monitoring the weather forecast, which currently shows the potential for freezing rain, sleet, and bitter cold lasting into early next week. While the forecast may still change, now is the time to prepare for possible impacts --including power outages--while we continue hoping for the best.
Here's what the City of Wilson is doing:
Wilson Energy has already begun storm preparations. Crews are adjusting staffing levels and staging equipment so they can respond as quickly and safely as possible if outages occur. City teams across departments are monitoring conditions and coordinating to support residents throughout the storm.
City crews have also started pre-treating parking lots and city streets to help melt ice a little faster. They will continue pre-treatment on Friday, and will be in place on Saturday to respond once the winter weather starts.
While we’re preparing for the storm, we recommend you do the same.
- Assemble your home emergency supplies, including water, food, medications and first aid kit.
- Gather coats, hats, blankets in a central location.
- Charge cell phones and power banks.
- If you plan to use an outdoor grill, be sure to have a good supply of charcoal or propane. And do not light a grill anywhere flames might endanger your property or where fumes could vent into your home.
- If there’s a person with special medical needs that depend on electricity, make emergency plans or alternative arrangements now to prepare for power outages.
- Please arrange for pets to be indoors, or if not possible, provide cover for them outdoors. Provide them with protection from wind, weather and extreme temperatures and be aware that water bowls need to be checked that water doesn’t freeze.
If possible, stay home! Travel is expected to be treacherous throughout the weekend. We need our first responders to be able to respond to emergences and we want Wilson Energy crews to be able to get to outages. The less traffic they encounter, the better.
Also, this precipitation should move through by Sunday, but we will have bitterly cold overnights into next weeks. So expect there to be icy spots and even black iced-over roads as you drive next week.
Finally, we will be sharing updates whenever we have important news so stay tuned to our communications channels. We will all come through this and be complaining about the summer heat and humidity soon enough.
It is very rare for the City of Wilson to have widespread, long-lasting power outages because our crews work year-round to mitigate this type of storm damage. But even the best preparation is no match for Mother Nature sometimes.
If this storm brings power outages, the Wilson Energy outage map will show the number and location of outages. We recommend you bookmark the outage map on your mobile device. If your area shows an outage, you do not need to call us to report it. The outage map also shows an expected restoration time, which will give you a general idea of when we expect to have power back on. Please keep in mind during widespread outages, crews are working as quickly and safely as they can, and restoration times will be updated as we can.
There are some steps you can take to prepare for power outages.
- Take inventory of items in your home that rely on electricity.
- Charge cell phones, power banks, and portable chargers.
- Have a flashlight available for every family member.
- Keep extra batteries on hand.
We will share updates on the Winter Storm Update page on our website and through social media, primarily Facebook.
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