Energy company increasing staffing to quickly restore customers' power if outages occur

CHICAGO (June 26, 2020) – ComEd is closely monitoring and preparing for severe weather, including potential thunderstorms and high winds, across northern Illinois on Friday night. Forecasts project rain, lightning and sustained wind gusts up to 60 miles per hour. ComEd is increasing crew staffing and readying equipment to respond quickly if power outages occur.

When responding to power outages caused by storms, ComEd's priority is to restore critical facilities such as police and fire stations, nursing homes and hospitals first. The company will further increase its focus on these facilities as they are more critical than ever during the COVID-19 pandemic.

"We know that any outage is inconvenient to our customers, especially as temperatures begin to rise," said Terry Donnelly, president and COO of ComEd. "As they have done throughout the pandemic, our employees are prepared to respond quickly and safely to any outages that may result from storms."

Public safety is paramount, and ComEd encourages customers to take the following precautions:

• If a downed power line is spotted, immediately call ComEd at 1-800-EDISON1 (1-800-334-7661). Spanish-speaking customers should call 1-800-95-LUCES (1-800-955-8237).
• Never approach a downed power line. Always assume a power line is energized and extremely dangerous.
• In the event of an outage, do not approach ComEd crews working to restore power to ask about restoration times. Crews may be working on live electrical equipment and the perimeter of the work zone may be hazardous. Additionally, for the safety of everyone, our people are practicing social distancing.

ComEd urges customers to contact the company immediately if they experience a power outage. Customers can text OUT to 26633 (COMED) to report an outage and receive restoration information, and can follow the company on Twitter @ComEd or on Facebook at Facebook.com/ComEd. Customers can also call 1-800 EDISON1 (1-800-334-7661), or report outages via the website at www.ComEd.com/report. Spanish-speaking customers should call 1-800-95-LUCES (1-800-955-8237). 

ComEd has introduced a mobile app for iPhone and Android® smart phones that gives customers the ability to report power outages and manage their accounts; download the app at www.ComEd.com/app.

ComEd has an interactive outage map on its website at www.ComEd.com/map, which allows customers to easily find information on the location and size of outages and get estimated power restoration times.