You may be aware that the current cold spell of icy winds and snow may bring ‘freezing rain’. Freezing rain is a very rare weather phenomenon and occurs when very cold rain freezes immediately on landing.
Our electricity network is built to be resilient but extreme weather can damage overhead power lines, resulting in some customers losing their electricity supply. Where this happens we work to restore power as quickly and safely as possible, and we have organised for additional staff in our contact centre and more engineers on the ground to be available to help customers whose electricity supply might be affected by the cold weather.
You will be able to find regular updates on our website www.ukpowernetworks.co.uk and social media @UKPowerNetworks throughout this period.
Anyone experiencing a power cut should:
• Call 105 to report power cuts and damage to the electricity network, or 0800 3163 105
(from a corded phone or mobile phone if you have no power)
• Visit www.ukpowernetworks.co.uk/powercut and type in their postcode to view our live power cut map
We advise people to stay clear of power lines and report damaged power lines immediately by calling 105 free from either a landline or a mobile phone. If they see electricity lines that are down or causing significant risk to the public they should call 999.
We provide extra help to customers on our Priority Service Register during a power cut. Households with older or disabled people, those with children under five, or where someone uses medical or mobility equipment that requires electricity as well as other reasons can join the register. You can find out more information about our Priority Service on our website: ukpowernetworks.co.uk/priority.
If you would like to share information about reporting power cuts or the priority service register on social media you might like to use the following:
@UKPowerNetworks has extra staff on hand 24/7 to deal with the impact of the cold weather. Call 105 to report a powercut or visit www.ukpowernetworks.co.uk/powercut
Do you need extra support during a power cut? @UKPowerNetworks provides free services to vulnerable customers. To register visit ukpowernetworks.co.uk/priority
Michael Horwood
Community Affairs Officer – South East
UK Power Networks
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