NORFOLK, Va. — Dominion Energy is warning customers to brace for the possibility of multi-day restoration efforts following Tuesday's severe weather.
A spokesperson for Dominion Energy said that about 96,000 customers in eastern Virginia and Northeastern North Carolina lost power during the storm and about 20,000 customers in the regions remain without power. "Our crews worked through the night and are still working. While severe weather is over we're still dealing with high winds which can still cause more outages as well as affect how crews work."
Heavy rain and high winds battered much of southeast Virginia and northeast North Carolina throughout Tuesday, worsening in the evening hours and continuing Wednesday morning.
What to do if you're still without power:
- Outages can be reported and viewed on Dominion Energy's website.
- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends using natural light or flashlights, instead of candles due to fire hazards.
As of 4:00 p.m., more than 1,500 Dominion Energy customers are without power in southeast Virginia:
- Chesapeake: 23
- Hampton: 34
- Isle Of Wight: 103
- James City: 383
- Norfolk: 89
- Portsmouth: 132
- Suffolk: 25
- Surry: 380
- Virginia Beach: 304
- York: 65
Outages can be reported and viewed on Dominion Energy's website.
The utility company has deployed hundreds of crews across Hampton Roads, Gloucester, the Outer Banks, and several other counties in North Carolina.
Rain and wind hammered Hampton Roads Tuesday night, leaving fallen trees behind.
The high winds brought down a tree that smashed through the roof on Debbs Lane just before 4 p.m. No one was hurt there, but the two adults living there had to find somewhere else to stay, according to the Chesapeake Fire Department.
Over in Norfolk, a massive, downed tree blocked West Ocean and Belgrave avenues off Granby Street.
These downed trees were something Dominion Energy was prepared for after lots of rain leading up to this
"When the ground is already saturated and you get another heavy rainstorm, that creates the circumstances for downed tree limbs, downed trees coming down on our power lines," said Tim Eberly, a spokesperson for Dominion Energy.
Tuesday afternoon he said they’re treating this storm as an "all hands on deck" situation.
"This storm does have the potential for some significant outages, to the tune of a multi-day restoration effort," he said.
Dominion Energy encourages people to fully charge their electronic devices and portable batteries, fuel and test that their generator is properly connected, and stock up on bottled water, non-perishable food and emergency supplies like flashlights, batteries, first aid kits and medications.
"We will work around the clock to get our customers’ power back on as safely and quickly as possible," a spokesperson for Dominion Energy said in a release. "Due to the strong winds and potentially severe damage to trees and power lines, it could take multiple days to restore power to all impacted customers."
Eberly said they know it’s frustrating when you lose power, but they ask for the community to bear with Dominion crews as they work to get the power back on.
"We’re gonna be out there trying to get power on as fast as possible, but we also ask for the community’s patience and for them to know that we are trying as hard as we can," he said.
To stay up-to-date on outages and how to report power loss, visit Dominion Energy's website or call 866-366-4357.
Dominion Energy noted that preparing for a storm is a year-round task that customers can accomplish by trimming trees, replacing older poles, and burying power lines in areas prone to outages.