Entergy Crews Conducting House by House Damage Assessment

08/18/2016

CONTACT

Michael Burns
504-576-4132
mburns@entergy.com

Kacee Kirschvink
504-576-4132
kkirsch@entergy.com

Power restoration taking place as area recovers from historic floods

BATON ROUGE, Louisiana – Entergy crews from four states are walking through neighborhoods across south Louisiana, inspecting electrical equipment and working to re-energize lines where it is safe to do so.

As of 4 p.m. Thursday, the number of customers without power due to flooding had dropped to 7,082 from Tuesday night’s peak of 32,157 customers. The process of restoring power to the remaining customers will be a slow one, as customers who had received floodwaters in their homes or businesses may have to make repairs to their electrical system before power can be restored.

Customers in the Baton Rouge, Denham Springs and Gonzales areas who did not receive floodwater but are still without power may also have to wait a little longer. Entergy cannot restore power to their area until all meters are inspected on their circuit as well as other devices. such as transformers and fuses.

These assessments are underway now and involve approximately 10,000 accounts. If a customer’s meter has been removed or deactivated because of water damage, Entergy will communicate with the customer about the measures that have taken place. Customers should refer to the outage map at entergystormcenter.com for updated restoration times.

“This is an unprecedented disaster,” said Dennis Dawsey, vice president of customer service for Louisiana. “Our crews are working hard to inspect the electrical system and take the necessary steps to keep customers safe. We thank everyone for their patience as we all get through this together.”

Customers with flooded or damaged homes should remember the following guidelines, which have been developed with the safety of customers and Entergy employees in mind and considering the hardships that many customers are enduring.

Did water at your home or office reach the outside electric meter?

If so, Entergy will remove the electric meter.
You may need city inspections once work is completed to turn the power back on.
After this is done, call Entergy at 1-800-368-3749 for a reconnect. When we receive permits, we will reinstall service to the facility.

Did the water level rise above your electrical outlets but stop below the electric meter?

If you are present when Entergy arrives:

Entergy will advise you to turn off your main breaker and have repairs made. You will then need to turn your main breaker back on when repairs are complete.
For your safety, Entergy suggests that a qualified electrician inspect electrical equipment inside of the facility or home, even if your city or parish does not require an inspection. If the breaker is turned on before such inspections, you may cause personal injury or property damage.

If you are not present when Entergy arrives:

Entergy will disconnect the electric meter, and it will remain in place. You will not have power at this point.
For your safety, Entergy suggests that a qualified electrician inspect electrical equipment inside of the facility or home.

Baton Rouge Natural Gas Customers

Entergy gas personnel are currently patrolling areas affected by flooding to assess damage to gas meters and associated facilities. We currently estimate that up to 25,000 Entergy gas meters were submerged during the flood and may need to be replaced.
If your home or business experienced significant flooding, Entergy gas personnel may need to turn off your gas service and remove your gas meter. If your gas meter is removed, a permit will be required to re-establish service.
If one or more of your gas appliances have flooded, contact a licensed plumber or contractor to inspect your system before using the flooded appliance. Don’t try to put a flooded natural gas appliance back in service yourself. You may be required to obtain a permit from your respective city or parish before we can restore your gas service.
If you experience any interruption of your natural gas service, call 1-800-ENTERGY to report a natural gas outage.
Anytime you smell natural gas, or if you hear a blowing or hissing noise, open a window, leave the area immediately and call 1-800-ENTERGY.

Customers are encouraged to download Entergy’s mobile app to access maps and information. For real-time progress on restoration work see the View Outages feature at entergy.com. In addition, online services are available to customers through "Entergy Storm Center," and "myAccount." Through myAccount, customers can sign up to send and receive text information about power outages at their homes and businesses through their cell phones. Registration is easy.

Entergy Louisiana, LLC provides electric service to more than 1 million customers and natural gas service to approximately 93,000 customers in the greater Baton Rouge area. With operations in southern, central and northeastern Louisiana, the company is a subsidiary of Entergy Corporation.

Entergy Corporation is an integrated energy company engaged primarily in electric power production and retail distribution operations. Entergy owns and operates power plants with approximately 30,000 megawatts of electric generating capacity, including nearly 10,000 megawatts of nuclear power. Entergy delivers electricity to 2.8 million utility customers in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. Entergy has annual revenues of approximately $11.5 billion and more than 13,000 employees

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