Cumming-based Sawnee Electric Membership Corporation plans are underway for the possible developments from Hurricane Irma.
“We are very proactive when it comes to storm preparations,” states Blake House, Vice President of Member Services. “We do not wait until the last minute to get ready, especially with storms of this magnitude, where predictions tend to be very accurate. We prepare just in case.”
Sawnee plans to invoke its emergency response plan as the storm gets closer to the U.S., which puts its staff and contractors on notice that they will be called upon to respond to any outages caused by the storm. Additional crews will be “on standby” to aid in the restoration efforts, as well as additional materials and supplies.
“The safety of our staff and contractors is of utmost importance in an event like this,” states Chet Blackstock, Vice President of Operations. “We make every effort to protect our workers and the public from hazardous conditions, while we restore service after major weather events and widespread outages.”
Sawnee members that utilize standby generation are encouraged to test their equipment in advance of the storm to make sure it is operating correctly. People should also develop a storm kit, which includes water, medicine, flashlights, batteries, and other essentials. We also recommend that you charge your cell phone, tablets and other electronic devices so that if outages do occur, you will not be caught off-guard.
Sawnee’s advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) system will automatically notify the cooperative of a power outage, but members may still report an outage or emergency situation in a number of different ways. One of the easiest ways is via their mobile App, which is available at the Apple App Store, as well as the Google Play Marketplace. The App will provide outage updates and status information, as well. Outages may also be reported online at www.sawnee.com under the outage tab, or via the online “chat” feature.
New for 2017 is the ability to report outage via text message by texting “out” to 678-999-8124. Be sure to include the name on the account, and address, when texting an outage.
Finally, Sawnee monitors their Facebook and Twitter accounts regularly, especially during storms, so members can post comments or send Tweets to stay in touch, or simply call the Call Center at 770-887-2363 if you wish to speak with a live person at the cooperative.
