Ameren Missouri crews are in communities in the Cape Girardeau area assessing damage from the first wave of severe weather. The more than 500 team members the company positioned yesterday ahead of the storm are responding to outages.
Severe weather and the possibility of more outages remain a concern as freezing rain continues to fall, coating power lines with ice. A combination of ice and wind causes what is known as galloping conductors, where the lines fluctuate and bounce up and down – potentially leading to more outages.
A Mobile Command Center is located in Hayti, MO., to oversee restoration efforts in the region. Ameren Missouri’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) is coordinating logistics.
Employees are working quickly and safely to restore power and remind customers they too should put safety first.
“Falling branches often bring down power lines in an ice storm,” said Michael Moehn, senior vice president, Ameren Missouri Customer Operations. “Safety is critical at this time. If customers see a downed line, we are asking them to stay clear of the line and surrounding area and call us immediately.”
Customers can call 1.800.552.7583 or 9.1.1 to report a downed line. The most important safety rule is to assume downed lines are energized. Stay inside because you may walk into an energized power line. Stay clear of brush, shrubs and downed trees that may hide downed lines.
While every effort is made to restore power as quickly as possible, customers with special needs—including those with medical conditions, seniors, handicapped and others who are dependent on electric service—may wish to consider making alternative arrangements if outages in their areas persist.
Customers can report an outage at Ameren.mobi using a smartphone, go online to AmerenMissouri.com/Outage or call 1.800.552.7583.
Additional storm safety information is available at the Ameren Missouri Outage Center at AmerenMissouri.com/Outage.
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Ameren Missouri has been providing electric and gas service for more than a century, and our electric rates are among the lowest in the nation. We serve 1.2 million electric and 127,000 natural gas customers in central and eastern Missouri. Our mission is to meet their energy needs in a safe, reliable, efficient and environmentally responsible manner. Our service area covers 63 counties and more than 500 towns, including the greater St. Louis area. For more information, visit AmerenMissouri.com.