Prepare and stay safe during monsoon season
June 15 marked the official start of monsoon season in Arizona, which means storms and high winds are just around the corner.
HOW TO PREPARE FOR
MONSOON SEASON While APS prepares for this season year-round and has crews ready to respond to outages quickly and safely, there are various ways you can prepare for the upcoming storms.
· Place flashlights and extra batteries in handy locations.
· Have your APS account number readily available.
· Keep important phone numbers such as medical providers, family, friends and APS stored in your cell phone or by your home phone.
· If you use life-support medical equipment that requires electricity, call to register for our Medical Preparedness Program at 800-253-9405. This alerts us of your needs in the event of an outage.
· Have a gallon of water available for each person as well as non-perishable foods.
· If you have an automatic garage door, be sure you know how to open the door manually in case you are without power.
HELP PREVENT OUTAGES Although some storms can cause unavoidable damage to electrical infrastructure, there are things you can do to help prevent outages in your neighborhood, including:
· Stay aware of the day’s forecast and keep up to date on changing conditions. Monsoons can develop quickly and move rapidly.
· Secure outdoor objects that could blow away and cause damage. Objects found in a typical backyard during the summer can catch flight when swept up by high monsoon winds. Things like umbrellas, kiddie pools and even trampolines can end up on electric wires and cause outages. In 2019, objects like these caused more than 127 outages throughout APS territory.
WHAT TO DO DURING AN
OUTAGE
· Visit our Outage Center or download our app to report an outage and view our map online at http:// outagemap.aps.com/outageviewer/.
· Don’t open refrigerators or freezers more than necessary. Food will stay cold for 12 to 24 hours as long as the refrigerator and freezer doors are kept closed.
· Turn off and unplug all unnecessary electrical equipment and appliances. This will protect them from electrical spikes. Wait 5-10 minutes after power comes back on to plug in and turn on major appliances and electrical equipment.
· If your home is the only one without power in your neighborhood the outages could be because of your home’s circuit breaker.
· Don’t try to repair electrical problems on your own. Electricity can be deadly.
APS customers can sign up for outage alerts at aps. com and download the
APS mobile app. The app provides quick access to helpful tools including the APS outage map, which provides the most up-todate information during power outages.
APS is committed to finding new ways to maintain reliability, affordability, and most importantly conduct our work safely.