Full restoration expected by the end of the week

(February 9, 2022 – 9 p.m.) Contract crews from Oklahoma, Virginia, Tennessee and Illinois are working side-by-side MLGW teams around the clock to restore customers who remain without power following the third worst storm in recent Memphis history. A map of where crews are working is available here: mlgw.com/home/ice-storm-update-dashboard-2022/.

As repairs progress, the utility urges customers who are listed as a single outage or notice damage at their meter center to contact an electrician for repairs. Meter centers are the homeowner’s responsibility.

Customers should be aware they may receive multiple estimated times of restoration as their outage enters different phases of repair either on the outage map, in My Account or when calling. As equipment maintenance is completed, damage may be identified somewhere else in the electricity delivery system, triggering a new estimated time of restoration for the subsequent repair.

While the community recovers, disconnects for non-payment are suspended until further notice.

Customers are asked to download the MLGW app and sign up for the My Account program to report and track outages, sign up for text alerts, handle billing issues, monitor usage and more. Once enrolled in text alerts, you can reply STAT (for outage status) or OUT (outage reporting) to 67109. Find enrollment instructions, here.

Important MLGW contact information for customers:

• Electric Outage Reporting: 544-6500

• Emergencies: 528-4465 (for electrical lines down, gas leaks, broken water mains inside a building)

• Online Outage Center: mlgw.com/home/outagecenter

 

Generator Safety Tips

· Never use a generator indoors or in an enclosed area such as a garage. Generators emit toxic carbon monoxide from the engine exhaust.

· A generator should only be operated in a well-ventilated and dry area, away from air intakes to the home. It should be protected from direct exposure to rain and snow, preferably under a canopy, open shed or carport.

· Do not attempt to restore power to your entire house by plugging the generator into a wall outlet. The electricity produced by a generator cannot only ruin your home's wiring and start a fire, it can also feed back into the utility system and energize a line thought to be without power possibly killing utility workers trying to restore power. It can also cause damage to the generator when electric service is restored.

· Handle fuel carefully. Turn the generator off prior to refueling. Gasoline, kerosene and other flammable liquids should be stored outside of living areas in properly labeled safety containers.

· Turn off or disconnect all appliances prior to operating a portable generator. Once the generator is running, appliances powered by the generator can be turned on one at a time.

· MLGW will not come out to check the generator connections. You must use an electrical contractor to ensure that generator is isolated from the grid to eliminate backfeed.

MLGW is the largest three-service public power utility in the nation, serving more than 437,000 customers in Memphis and Shelby County.