MLGW expects severe storms to cause another wave of outages

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) - As the Mid-South braces for another round of storms, Memphis Light, Gas and Water is also planning for potential outages with trees and limbs already weak from the ice storm.

It’s been just a couple of days since power was restored for the remaining customers who lost power during the ice storm on Feb. 3. Now MLGW says strong winds from thunderstorms could cause more outages.

During the MLGW board meeting Wednesday, utility leaders went over what worked and what did not work during the latest mass restoration process.

MLGW President and CEO J.T. Young said the new text message system crashed because there was no power. MLGW’s tech team will be talking with Louisiana utilities to see how their text alert systems work during storms.

Also, getting crews into town to help with the restoration was not easy.

“We were unable to secure contractors because there were concerns in their locations about what the storm was going to do there,” said Young. “So, it was difficult early on for us to get contractors to commit to come in very early because they didn’t want to release their crews. And this is typically what we would do, too, if we thought we would have some damage.”

• MLGW told Action News 5 that crews and contract crews are ready to respond to any local damages or outages
• Customers should avoid contact with downed lines because even if the power’s out the line can still be energized
• Call the MLGW’s Emergency Hotline at: 901-528-4465 to report downed lines.

The City of Memphis is also advising homeowners to clear out their gutters and get rid of any debris to avoid localized flooding.

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