HUGHESVILLE, Md.—SMECO reports that major power restoration efforts continue. As of 9 a.m. Sunday, SMECO had about 16,351 customer-members without power. The most heavily affected area is Charles County with 11,600 customers without power. Approximately 2,400 customers in Calvert County, 451 in St. Mary's County, and 1,900 in Prince George's County are without power. More than 1,200 outage incidents have been reported. An incident is a damage event which can range from a blown transformer to a tree on a line or a broken pole. As of 8 p.m. Saturday, all feeders were energized.
SMECO crews worked throughout the night and all day Saturday along with contract crews from Pike, Penn Line, and C.W. Wright. Five additional contract crews from Pike, one additional crew from C.W. Wright and two crews from electric co-ops in North Carolina (Tri-County EMC and Roanoake Electric Cooperative) are assisting restoration efforts on Sunday. The majority of SMECO's customer-members should have power restored by Monday. Some customers in Charles County may not have power restored until Tuesday.
SMECO's outage restoration policy is to make repairs that will restore service to the most people in the least amount of time. Transmission lines and substations are repaired first, followed by distribution lines that feed neighborhoods. Tap lines and individual service lines are then repaired to restore power to customers who may still be without electricity.
Customers without power should call SMECO's Outage Hotline at 1-877-74-SMECO or 1-877-747-6326. Customers are reminded to use generators outdoors, use gas and charcoal grills outdoors, and use flashlights instead of candles.