Frequently asked questions

What causes power outages?
The top 4 causes of power outage hours in Clark County are:

Why do I have trouble getting a call through to your office during an outage?
If you're calling our regular (360) 992-3000 number, we don't have enough phone lines to handle the hundreds or thousands of calls we could be getting during an outage.  That's why in late 1996 we installed the PowerLine, a special phone line you can now use to report outages and get updated outage information. You can reach the PowerLine at (360) 992-8000. And because PowerLine can take up to 1,200 calls a minute, you're unlikely to ever get a busy signal!
 
Why can't you tell me specifically when my power will be restored?
Unless the cause of an outage is obvious (such as a car running into a power pole), it takes us some time to determine the extent of the damage. And the problems are magnified during winter storms that result in numerous outages. Our priority is simply to get your power back on, not to guess about how quickly it may happen.
 
My neighbors have power - why don't I?
Sometimes there's a blown fuse in a transformer or damage done to the line serving your home. But we also may have to isolate a small section of line to work on a problem, even while power has been restored to other parts of the same line.
 
Do certain customers get priority in having their power restored after an outage?
No. We start with the biggest problems and work our way down. No one gets special treatment. However, we do make special efforts to respond quickly to the needs of emergency service providers, such as police, fire stations and hospitals.
 
Why does it take so many hours, sometimes days, to get power back?
During major outages that affect many areas of the county, we have to attack all the problems methodically and make sure we're doing it in a safe manner. The time it takes to repair problems is directly related to the extent of the damage.
 
Why can't you prevent outages from occurring in the first place?
We do our best during non-emergency time to maintain and upgrade our entire electric system. But unfortunately, no system is built to withstand falling trees, branches across lines and other side effects of severe weather. A well-designed and maintained system will prevent some damage, but it can't completely prevent outages.
 
Why don't you just bury all power lines, or at least put them underground in the areas most prone to outages?
Underground power lines are up to 10 times as expensive to install. Because of the larger stretches of line in rural areas, where outage repairs are more difficult, it would cost customers too much to put in underground service. Underground lines also have unique maintenance problems, so installing them doesn't make the customers they serve immune to outages.