Blue Ridge Energy advises members to be prepared for Hurricane Helene

LENOIR — Blue Ridge Energy line technicians and staff are on high alert and prepared to respond should the effects of Hurricane Helene, which is expected to impact our area Thursday night and Friday, cause outages.

The cooperative advises members to be prepared with the following tips.

Before a storm, have the following on hand to stay safe and more comfortable in the event of an outage:

Flashlights and extra batteriesExtra water for drinking, cooking and for petsNon-perishable food that can be eaten without an oven or microwave such as: fruit, energy bars, canned tuna or chicken, crackers, peanut butter, cereal, canned coffee and drinks. Include a manual can opener.NOAA Weather Radio. Or sign up for alerts from emergency and weather services on a smart phone or tablet.First aid kit, including prescription medicationsCharcoal or propane grill (use only in a well-ventilated areas)Keep cell phones charged and have fully charged battery backupsIf elderly or dependent upon life support equipment powered by electricity, have a back-up plan in case storm damage to the electric system is severe enough to require extra restoration time to repair downed powers lines and poles.

Always report an outage. Outages may be reported in the following ways:

Call PowerLine: 1-800-448-2383Over the Blue Ridge Energy mobile appBy text (be sure your mobile number is listed on your account) and text OUT to 70216.

For outage status at any time:

Check the cooperative’s online outage map at www.BlueRidgeEnergy.com and on our mobile app.

Safety:

Stay away from downed power lines. Don’t touch a downed line or any object that is in contact with it. This can be dangerous or even deadly! Always report downed power lines to the cooperative by calling 1-800-451-5474. A trained line technician is the only person who should handle downed power line situations.

Blue Ridge Energy posts information during major outages on its social media channels: www.facebook.com/blueridgeenergy; www.instagram.com/blueridgeenergy and www.twitter.com/blueridgeemc. However, outage reporting is only available using one of the three options above (phone, mobile app or text) to ensure all outages are logged into the cooperative’s outage management system.

Blue Ridge Energy serves some 78,000 members in Caldwell, Watauga, Ashe, Alleghany, and parts of Wilkes, Avery and Alexander counties. Its propane and fuels subsidiary serves customers in the cooperative’s service area as well as Burke, Catawba, and Grayson County, Va. Learn more at www.BlueRidgeEnergy.com.