As Tropical Storm Debby moves across southeastern North Carolina with strong winds and rain, some power outages are reported.
You can see the latest outages using StarNews’ outage map. You can search by county or view the entire state. As of 5 a.m. Thursday, the map showed more than 60,000 outages across the state, with only a few hundred in the Wilmington area.
Duke Energy, one of the state’s largest utilities, says it has 7,500 linemen, vegetation maintenance workers and other workers, including 300 traveling from the Midwest to help with post-storm recovery efforts.
“Safety is our top priority and we are strategically deploying our teams across the Carolinas so they will be ready to deploy as soon as conditions safely allow,” said Jason Hollifield, Duke Energy’s storm director for the Carolinas.
More: Live updates from Debby: What’s happening in the Wilmington area on Thursday
Duke Energy offers the following electrical safety guidelines:
- If rising water threatens your home or business — or if you need to evacuate due to flooding — turn off the power at the circuit breaker panel or fuse box.
- Electricity flows easily through water, so stay away from fallen power lines.
- Do not drive over or stand near fallen power lines.
- Never replace a fuse or touch a circuit breaker when you have wet hands or are standing on a wet or damp surface.
- If your home or business is flooded, Duke Energy cannot restore power until the electrical system is inspected by a licensed electrician. If there is damage, an electrician must make the necessary repairs and obtain certification from your local building inspector before power can be restored.After the storm
- Stay away from fallen or sagging power lines. Be aware of all live wires and trees, branches, and other objects that may come into contact with the lines.
- If a power line falls on a car you are in, stay in the car. If you MUST get out of the car due to a fire or other immediate life-threatening situation, try your best to jump out of the car and land on both feet. Be careful not to let any part of your body touch the car when your feet touch the ground.
- Fallen wires are difficult to spot in the rain and can be hidden in standing water. If you come across large puddles of standing water, stop, backtrack, and choose a different path.
