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Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) has scheduled a power outage (lasting 9 hours through the night) for the Prosser area, serviced by Benton PUD, to perform maintenance required for the safety and reliability of the BPA electric system.
- Keep flashlights ready and in an easy place to find. A flashlight in the bottom of a closet may be hard to find in the dark.
- If your phone is cordless, it relies on power to work. To assure phone service, have one phone that doesn’t need power or keep extra charged phone batteries or a charged power bank available.
- If you have an electric garage door opener, know how to open the garage door manually.
- Avoid or limit opening refrigerators and freezers.
- When the power goes out, try to remember what was turned on at the time and turn those items off. It's especially important to turn off anything that has a heating element, such as the electric range, an iron, or a toaster oven. They could cause a fire when the power is restored. Turning switches off not only helps prevent fires; it will help us restore power faster. If too many items are on when the power is restored, the electric system could be overloaded and go out again.
- If you need power for medical reasons it is important to have a plan in case of an outage. Be prepared to go someplace that has power or to the hospital.
- If you use a portable generator it must be connected through an approved transfer switch that is isolated from Benton PUD's system. Please call us if you have questions about generators.
- Never use ovens, barbecues, portable heaters, or generators indoors as they produce toxic fumes that can be deadly.
- Keep blankets and other flammable materials away from lit candles.
- If you do have an outage, call Benton PUD at (888) 582-2176. Please do not call 9-1-1 to report it. 9-1-1 should only be used to report an emergency.
- Sign up for SmartHub text alert and email notifications to get quick updates on outages related to your service location(s).
- Flashlights and batteries, glow-in-the-dark sticks, and/or battery-operated lantern
- Candles and matches
- Portable radio and batteries
- Power bank to charge your phone
- Windup clock
- Mylar blanket
- Hat and gloves
- Can opener and food that doesn't require refrigeration
- Water - 1 gallon per person per day