JCP&L Continues to Make Repairs Following Severe Thunderstorms

JCP&L Continues to Make Repairs Following Severe Thunderstorms

Winds Gusts Nearing 70 MPH Caused Tree-Related Damage in Northern New Jersey

MORRISTOWN, N.J., May 16, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Service has been restored to more than 65,000 Jersey Central Power & Light (JCP&L) customers who lost power following the damaging thunderstorms that produced wind gusts approaching 70 mph as it blew across the Mid-Atlantic region late yesterday.

Currently, approximately 38,000 customers remain out of service, mostly in the hardest hit areas of Morris, Passaic, Sussex, and Warren counties. JCP&L expects the vast majority of the remaining customers to be restored to service by late Thursday, with many people in the affected areas getting their power back on sooner. Those customers experiencing more severe damage will be restored Friday.

The restoration effort includes about 1,400 JCP&L linemen, electrical contractors, FirstEnergy utility personnel, damage assessors, hazard responders, forestry supervisors, and dispatchers that are on the ground or en route. Crews are addressing safety hazards and road closures while making progress restoring customers.

"JCP&L personnel and contractors are prepared to work around the clock to restore customers who lost power following the damaging thunderstorms that impacted northern New Jersey late yesterday," said Jim Fakult, president of JCP&L. "The severe winds resulted in significant tree-related damage to our system, including broken poles and downed wires that will need to be replaced. Our restoration times reflect this wide-spread damage and also the hundreds of single outages that will require crews to travel to each individual location to make repairs."

As part of its storm restoration process, JCP&L has taken the following steps:

    --  Ramped up storm updates on social media and on the company website. 
        Follow JCP&L on Twitter @JCP_L, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/JCPandL
        or online at www.jcp-l.com
    --  Activated its Emergency Command Center
    --  Ramped up its Incident Command System
    --  Communicated with emergency management officials, state officials,
        regulators, and local officials about storm restoration efforts
    --  Staffed additional dispatchers and analysts at regional dispatch offices

After local power lines are repaired and put back in service, damage to individual customer service wires may become apparent. Customers are reminded that if their neighbor's power is on and theirs is not, the problem may be isolated to their individual service, and service to the neighbor could be fed from a different circuit. Customers are encouraged to report such problems, even at this latter stage in the restoration process.

JCP&L reminds customers to immediately report downed wires to their utility at 888-LIGHTSS (888-544-4877), or to their local police or fire department. Customers should never go near a downed wire even if they think it is no longer carrying electricity. Extra caution should be used in areas where downed lines are tangled in trees or other debris.

JCP&L is a subsidiary of FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE: FE). JCP&L serves 1.1 million New Jersey customers in the counties of Burlington, Essex, Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex, Monmouth, Morris, Ocean, Passaic, Somerset, Sussex, Union and Warren. Follow JCP&L on Twitter @JCP_L, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/JCPandL or online at www.jcp-l.com.

FirstEnergy is dedicated to safety, reliability and operational excellence. Its 10 electric distribution companies form one of the nation's largest investor-owned electric systems, serving customers in Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, West Virginia, Maryland and New York. The company's transmission subsidiaries operate more than 24,000 miles of transmission lines that connect the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions. Follow FirstEnergy on Twitter @FirstEnergyCorp or online at www.firstenergycorp.com.

CONTACT: Ron Morano, (973) 401-8097

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SOURCE FirstEnergy Corp.