Campus Announcements

PGE power-outage update from Towny Angell

The power outage on Tuesday was the result of a storm-related break in a main service feeder from PGE.  It is usually due to trees falling across power lines.  PGE was aware that this could occur and they were ready to respond.  They had 268 outages yesterday, but they restored power relatively quickly.  Their service crews are excellent.

In general, power outages occur relatively rarely and usually don't last much longer than the one we had yesterday. The college has several possible points of connection to three separate grids and if we were in an extended outage, it would be possible for PGE to come and switch us over to one of the other lines. Several buildings at the east of campus did not lose power in the outage though more than 35,000 PGE customers were out yesterday.

Facilities is glad to receive calls from individuals when an outage occurs, because it gives us a quick informal survey of how extensive the outage is. In general, it is difficult to get an immediate response as to the cause and duration of the outage because crews have to mobilize, find and fix the problem as quickly as possible, and the reporting comes later when they really know the extent of it.

In an outage event, those of you with working desktops, smart phones, iPads, or laptops can go to PGE's outage map and you will get information as soon as it is released.

For PGE customers, you can also find a link to opt-in to text messaging for outages in your home zip code. You'll need a copy of your PGE electric bill handy, because they'll want your account number.

It is still windy and the forecast is for freezing rain, so there may be more excitement, but CIS staff are incredible at protecting the continuity of the network and facilities staff are well versed in handling building systems in a power outage.

Everyone performed exceptionally well yesterday and we're all aware it is now the storming season.  The radio talked yesterday about a "comfort kit" as a opposed to a “emergency kit,” but whatever we like to call it, it is a good reminder that a flashlight, a weather radio, and other things that you would find helpful during an unplanned event are good things to have handy.  In their example they suggested  wine and chocolate—just in case, which seemed specifically appropriate.

We hope that's it, but you never know, so stay ready!

—Towny

Towny Angell, director of facilities operations

For more information, contact Towny Angell.
Submitted by Robin Tovey.
Posted on Nov 12, 2014

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