Stay Safe: Be Prepared During Electrical Storms and Outages
Summer thunderstorms are quickly making way for hurricane season and lightning and strong winds can suddenly interrupt electric service. UGI encourages its electric customers to take time now to plan ahead and prepare to keep your family safe in the event of an outage.
Be prepared: Create and Electrical Storm Emergency Kit:
- Flashlights, and battery-powered radio or TV – with extra fresh batteries for each.
- Landline phone with cord (cordless phones require electricity), and/or a way to recharge cell phone batteries.
- Battery-powered or windup alarm clock.
- A supply of bottled water – one gallon per person per day.
- Non-perishable foods that require no heating.
- Blankets, bedding or sleeping bags.
- First Aid kit and medications.
- Special items for infants, the elderly or family members with special needs.
- If you depend on medical equipment for life-support, purchase a back-up power supply for use during a power emergency.
- Emergency telephone numbers – UGI Electric can be reached at (800) 276-2722.
Lost power? Stay Alert, Remain Calm, Check Your Home:
- Make sure all appliances are turned off.
- Make sure faucets are in the off position in case you are not there when power comes back on.
- Only open refrigerator and freezer doors when necessary. A full freezer will stay frozen 36 to 48 hours; a half-full freezer will stay frozen for about 24 hours.
- If you use a generator during an outage, follow the manufacturer’s instructions for proper venting and operation.
- UGI Electric customers should call UGI’s emergency response number – 1-800-276-2722 – to report either an outage or downed power lines. DO NOT touch downed lines. Instruct children to STAY AWAY from downed lines. Your safety is always our top priority.
What You Can Do Today to Prepared for a Storm-relation Outage:
- Lightning can damage electric equipment. Use a ground fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) to help prevent electrical shock injuries.
- Use electrical surge protectors/suppressors, especially with “sensitive” electronic equipment – and plug into separate, grounded circuits. Buy electronic equipment with battery backup when possible.
- Talk to an electrician about installing a lightning arrester in your main circuit panel.
Remember to visit the UGI Outage Center in the event of a power outage for real-time updates information, visit: www.ugi.com/outage.
Thanks to a multi-year, $100,000 donation from UGI Utilities, heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration (HVAC/R) students at Lancaster County Career and Technology Center (CTC) in Brownstown have an opportunity to specialize in installing, troubleshooting and repairing natural gas-powered machines. UGI provided the funds so the program could purchase specialized heating and cooling equipment.
Install a programmable thermostat and raise the setting to the highest comfortable temperature. You can save from 3 to 5 percent on your air conditioning costs for each degree you raise the thermostat.
Seal holes and cracks around doors and windows. Eliminate air leaks around window air conditioners with foam insulation or weatherstripping.
Install efficient lighting that runs cooler. Only about 10 to 15 percent of the electricity that incandescent lights consume results in light—the rest is turned into heat.
On July 4, 1776, members of the Second Continental Congress declared American independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain at the Pennsylvania State House in Philadelphia. In honor of the bravery and determination of the Founding Fathers, UGI has chosen The Fourth of July Story as this month’s Little Reader Pick.
This September, UGI Utilities will undergo a customer information and billing system upgrade. This system upgrade will provide you the ability to manage more of your account online, simplify the communications you receive from us, and provide you with information to help lower your bills.
Girls Scouts are innovators, risk takers, and groundbreakers. They are tomorrow’s business, government, and community leaders who are working hard to build a better future for their communities. At UGI, we believe in empowering our future leaders of tomorrow, that’s why we’ve chosen Girl Scouts in the Heart of Pennsylvania (GSHPA) as our July Featured Community Organization.
“Since 2008, UGI has had record growth in residential and commercial customers,” Brominski said. He answered questions from an audience of nearly a hundred on topics ranging from UGI’s GET Gas program to natural gas vehicles, and from customer savings to combined heat and power (CHP) applications.
