CMP Restores 100,000 Outages Today

Most to be restored tonight

AUGUSTA, Maine — December 1, 2020 – The vast majority of CMP customers who remain without power Tuesday will have it restored Tuesday night with certain towns in Cumberland, Kennebec, Lincoln and Waldo counties restored on Wednesday. More than 389 line crews and 160 tree crews are working across the Central Maine Power (CMP) service territory restoring power outages caused by heavy wind and rain Monday night. As of 3:00 PM Tuesday afternoon, about 30,000 remained without power. The number of outages peaked at 91,137 at 3:00 AM Tuesday, with a total of 130,000 customers impacted during the storm.

 In addition to CMP crews and in-state contractors, the company is being assisted by line crews from its sister company in CT, and from VT, NJ and Canada. A total of about 1260 employees are involved in restoration today. 

Because of the extent of system damage, Brunswick, Harpswell, Belgrade, and Litchfield are among the towns that will likely not be completely restored until Wednesday, in addition to some towns in Lincoln and Waldo Counties. It is possible that more remote homes and camps could take longer given the priority to focus on the system repairs that restore the most customers at once.

“We understand that customers need power to work and attend classes from their homes and we will continue to work around the clock to restore power as quickly as we can,” said Kerri Therriault, Director of Electric Operations for CMP.  “We will shift resources to those areas that need more support as they finish up in other places.”  

CMP will post more specific restoration times on its outage list at cmpco.com as they are available this afternoon.

CMP continues to observe all COVID-19 safety protocols in storm response including:

- Working in separate teams to minimize contact
- Restricting visitor access to company facilities
- Entering a customer residence only in the event of emergency and after assessing risk
- Maintaining appropriate social distancing in the field
- Allowing one employee per vehicle
- Wearing masks

Customers may use online tools, accessible at www.cmpco.com to report and monitor outages.

If you lose service:

To report an outage, visit Outage Central at cmpco.com. Customers may also report an outage using CMP’s 24/7 automated phone system at 800.696.1000. 

Keep sensitive electronic appliances such as computers, TVs and stereos plugged into a surge protector, or unplug them. They could be damaged if a power surge occurs when electricity is restored.
Keep refrigerator and freezer doors closed. For information about food safety, visit http://www.foodsafety.gov/keep/charts/refridg_food.html.

For customers with generators:

  • Hire a licensed electrician to install permanent generators and transfer switches.
  • Properly ground all portable generators.
  • Carefully read and observe all instructions in your generator’s operating manual.
  • Never run a generator indoors, or even in an open garage.
  • If your carbon monoxide detector goes off – get out of the building immediately and call 911.
  • Do not store fuel indoors or try to refuel a generator while it’s running.
  • Refer to CMP’s web page on generator safety

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About CMP: Central Maine Power Company (CMP), a subsidiary of AVANGRID, Inc., is Maine’s largest electricity transmission and distribution utility. Established in 1899 and based in Augusta, Maine, CMP serves approximately 636,000 customers across 346 communities in central and southern Maine. It operates approximately 23,500 miles of distribution lines and 2,900 miles of transmission lines. Over the last decade, the company has invested approximately $3.5 billion in Maine system infrastructure. In 2019, CMP was named Large Business of the Year by the Kennebec Valley United Way. For more information, visit www.cmpco.com.

About AVANGRID: AVANGRID, Inc. (NYSE: AGR) is a leading, sustainable energy company with approximately $36 billion in assets and operations in 24 U.S. states. With headquarters in Orange, Connecticut, AVANGRID has two primary lines of business: Avangrid Networks and Avangrid Renewables. Avangrid Networks owns eight electric and natural gas utilities, serving more than 3.3 million customers in New York and New England. Avangrid Renewables owns and operates a portfolio of renewable energy generation facilities across the United States. AVANGRID employs approximately 6,600 people. AVANGRID supports the U.N.’s Sustainable Development Goals and was named among the World’s Most Ethical Companies in 2019 and 2020 by the Ethisphere Institute. For more information, visit www.avangrid.com.

Media Contact:

  • Catharine Hartnett
    catharine.hartnett@avangrid.com
    207.458-3510 (cell)
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