If Hurricane Comes, Have Plan for Long-Term Power Outages

As residents prepare to enter the hurricane season, Texas-New Mexico Power wants to encourage customers to include in their plans steps they will take if they will be without power for a number of days due to damage to our equipment.

TNMP also wants to inform customers it has plans in place to address large-scale power outages.

“We know from experience how destructive and unpredictable hurricanes can be,” TNMP President Neal Walker said.

“For several months, our own emergency operations team has been working on plans to repair damaged equipment and restore power to customers as quickly as we can. While TNMP hopes not to have to put the plans into action, we ask our customers to understand that when restoring power, our first priority has to be safety – for our crews and for the public.”

Tips for customers to prepare for long-term outage:

• Customers on life support should take appropriate measures to ensure their safety in the case of a long-term power outage. Those customers are encouraged to consider relocating in advance of the hurricane in order to avoid power interruption.
• Avoid all downed lines. Assume any line on the ground is energized – and dangerous – and remain a safe distance away.
• Turn your refrigerator and freezer to their coldest settings the day before the storm to keep food fresh in the event of a power outage. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, a refrigerator will keep food safely cold for about four hours if unopened. A freezer will hold the temperature for approximately 48 hours (24 hours if it is half-full).
• Electric garage doors won't open if the power is out. Be sure to have a door key so you can re-enter after an evacuation.
• Check that emergency equipment such as flashlights, battery-operated radios and backup generators are in working order.

TNMP Prepares

Before the storm, we monitor weather forecasts, communicate with our mutual assistance partners to ensure they are on standby and have several staging sites prepared for them. After a severe storm, TNMP makes aerial and ground assessments of our equipment to ensure the right resources are available, such as the number of crews and materials needed to repair damaged equipment.

The highest restoration priorities will be locations like water treatment plants, sewer lift stations and police and fire stations. Priority is given to circuits with a large number of customers and shorter restoration times.

TNMP is a transmission and distribution service provider that delivers power to about 236,000 homes and businesses on behalf of retail electric providers in Texas. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of PNM Resources.

Media contact
Eric Paul: 409-949-5685