Chattanooga, TN (April 21, 2020; 5:00 p.m.) – EPB is planning to complete power restoration by tonight for all of the 60,000 EPB customers who lost power when tornados and severe weather ripped across the Chattanooga area last Sunday. About 750 customers impacted by the original storm system remain without power. The tornados also caused such significant damage to about 400 homes that they will have to be repaired or rebuilt before it will be safe to provide electric service to them again.
“We know this has been a very difficult time for people across our community who have been impacted by the tornados and the resulting outages,” said David Wade, president and CEO of EPB. “We appreciate how understanding our customers have been as we raced to complete the re-construction of a large part of the local electric system.”
Wade also highlighted EPB’s continuing focus on restoring internet and other fiber optic services. “We couldn’t begin fiber optic repairs until the utility poles had been replaced and the electric service had been restored, but we’ve had fiber crews coming in as soon as electric crews finished their work,” Wade said.
Currently, EPB has more than 400 fiber installers dedicated to the effort of repairing internet and other fiber optic services as quickly as possible. “Unfortunately, Chattanooga’s fiber network also sustained severe damage,” Wade said. “We’re working hard to re-splice the main feeder fiber cables. Doing this will restore fiber optic services to thousands of customers over the next few days and allow us to move to repairing the smaller distribution fiber lines to bring our remaining customers back on-line.”
EPB expects to restore fiber optic services to most customers by Friday, but restoration efforts will likely extend through the weekend.
Road Closure Information
As restoration continues please be on the lookout for periodic road closures. These closures are announced by Chattanooga Police Department on Facebook, Twitter, and other news media outlets. Follow the Chattanooga Police Department for up to date information. #roadclosures #CHAPD #PowerRestore
Generator Safety Tips
As EPB continues the effort, the utility urges people to avoid danger and injury when using a generator. If you’re using the type of generator that must be installed, be sure to hire a qualified electrician and make sure they install a transfer switch. This will prevent feedback loops which are dangerous for linemen and could cause damage to the electric system delaying restoration. Also, please remember to never run a generator indoors or in a garage. Learn more at safeelectricity.org.
EPB Quick Connect WiFi available to public
For people who need internet access, EPB has installed free EPB Quick Connect WiFi hotspots at 25 locations around the county. Those locations can be found at epbquickconnect.com.
Need EPB Customer Support?
Customers with questions are encouraged to go to EPB.com for the latest information including an outage map. Customer service representatives are also available by phone 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at 423-648-1372.
