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Severe weather expected to affect much of Entergy Mississippi’s service area
JACKSON, Mississippi –In Mississippi, February 15 through 19 is designated as Severe Weather Preparedness Week, but it looks like Mississippi will need to prepare beforehand. Over the next several days, winter weather is expected to bring everything from ice and snow to the northern part of the state to freezing rain to the southern part. All of Entergy Mississippi’s 45-county service area is expected to experience dangerously cold temperatures.
Extreme winter weather can cause power outages and downed power lines, but the company is prepared. Entergy Mississippi employees plan and train year-round, ready to respond and restore power when severe weather strikes. Our perpetual cycle of planning, preparation and training ensures we are Operation Storm Ready for every weather situation.
“We continually watch the weather and put our plan in action as soon as a severe weather threat emerges,” said Lea Turnipseed, Entergy Mississippi vice president of customer service. “These storms can be deadly. We encourage customers to form a storm-preparedness plan before severe weather appears. Waiting until a storm arrives may be too late.”
Prepare for extreme winter weather and the soon-to-come spring storms in advance by assembling an emergency kit of basic supplies. Make sure your family knows what to do and where to go if disaster strikes. Entergy can help you prepare with these tips on how to make a plan and a kit. Keep an emergency kit at home, but also keep one in your vehicle so you are prepared for the weather outside, as well, should you become stranded during an emergency.
After stocking up, ensure that you have several ways of getting severe weather warnings:
· Install a smart phone app that will alert you to severe weather in the area or sign up for emergency alerts on your smart phone.
· Have a weather radio with a loud alarm that will wake you when severe weather threatens at night.
Know how to communicate with Entergy Mississippi if you need help after a storm hits. There are several ways to report outages or downed power lines:
· Download the free app for your smartphone at entergy.com/app.
· Sign up for text alerts by texting REG to 36778 and have your account number and ZIP code handy. The registration pattern is as follows including spaces: REG (account number) (ZIP code). Once registered, text OUT to 36778 to report an outage. You can also report an outage online as a guest.
· Visit the Entergy Storm Center website and our View Outages page.
· Call us at 800-9OUTAGE (800-968-8243).
“While we work hard to prevent disruptions, unpredictable and powerful storms can still cause power outages,” said Turnipseed. “Being prepared and having everything you need in one location, including a way to notify us, can help you weather the storm with greater peace of mind while we work to safely restore your service.”
Cold weather can also affect bills. Heating systems have to work harder to keep your home or business warm, thus using more electricity. Also, leaky doors or windows can let cold air in. Follow these tips to minimize the impact of cold weather on your energy bill:
· Set the temperature at 68 degrees for optimum energy efficiency and comfort. Every degree higher than this can raise your bill as much as 3 percent, so a winter setting of 78 degrees could increase your bill by 30 percent.
· Do not waste money heating rooms you don’t use often. Close the vents to direct the air to the rooms you use the most.
· Put weather stripping around doors or windows, or place a rolled-up towel at the bottom of exterior doors to block cold air that can seep in.
For more simple, low-cost tips to help you save energy and money on your power bill, visit entergymississippi/savememoney.
In addition to preparing to respond to power outages, Entergy Corporation has partnered with the American Red Cross Disaster Responder Program by committing $500,000 to help the communities it serves better prepare for and recover from potential disasters. The contribution will help streamline the response process in times of disaster, allowing funds to arrive more quickly to help those affected across the company’s four-state service area.
Entergy Mississippi, LLC provides electricity to approximately 450,000 customers in 45 counties. Entergy Corporation is an integrated energy company engaged primarily in electric power production and retail distribution operations. Entergy owns and operates power plants with approximately 30,000 megawatts of electric generating capacity, including nearly 9,000 megawatts of nuclear power. Entergy delivers electricity to 2.9 million utility customers in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. Entergy has annual revenues of $11 billion and approximately 13,600 employees.
MageeNews.com is an online news source serving Simpson and surrounding counties as well as the State of Mississippi.
