Safety tips from Duke Energy to keep customers safe this hurricane season

Duke Energy is advising its customers to prepare and have a plan set up to protect themselves and their families this hurricane season.

To help with this, the corporation has put together these suggested safety tips for their customers.

Create (or update) an emergency supply kit to save valuable time later. The kit should include everything an individual or family would need for at least two weeks, especially medicines, water, nonperishable foods and other supplies that might be hard to find after a storm hits.

Keep a portable radio or TV or a NOAA weather radio on hand to monitor weather forecasts and important information from state and local officials.

Charge cellphones, computers and other electronic devices in advance of storms to stay connected to important safety and response information. Consider purchasing portable chargers and make sure they are fully charged as well.

Maintain a plan to move family members – especially those with special needs – to a safe, alternative location in case an extended power outage occurs or evacuation is required.

If an outage occurs, disconnect or turn off any nonessential electrical equipment that may start automatically when power is restored to avoid overloading circuits and do not open freezers or refrigerators more than necessary. Opening will allow food to thaw more quickly.

In case of strong winds, stay away from windows and doors, even if they are covered. Seek shelter in a small interior room, closet or hallway on the lowest floor.

Should the customer or someone they know lose power, they can view outage restoration using the Outage Map. The outage map shows currently reported outages and any estimated times of restoration. Customers can drill down to their neighborhood and even address.

Stay away from power lines that have fallen or are sagging. Consider all lines energized, as well as trees, limbs or anything in contact with lines.

If a power line falls across a car that you are in, stay in the car. If you must get out of the car due to a fire or another immediate life-threatening situation, do your best to jump clear of the car and land on both feet. Be sure that no part of your body touches the car when your feet touch the ground.

Before the storm hits, customers should contact us to make sure their contact information is up to date and their communication preferences are noted, so they receive proactive updates on the status of a power outage they may experience.

Customers who experience an outage during a storm can report it the following ways:

Use the Duke Energy mobile app – Download the Duke Energy App from a smartphone via the Apple Store or Google Play.

Visit duke-energy.com on a desktop computer or mobile device.

Text OUT to 57801 (standard text and data charges may apply).

Call the automated outage-reporting system for your utility: Duke Energy Carolinas: 800.769.3766. Duke Energy Progress: 800.419.6356

Customers can find more at duke-energy.com/outages/alerts.

Customer service specialists also will be available to manage customer calls should the need arise, with more than 1,500 additional corporate responders from across all Duke Energy jurisdictions available to assist as needed.

For more tips on how to prepare for storm season and how Duke Energy can help, please visit duke-energy.com/Storm Tips. For storm or power restoration updates, follow Duke Energy on Twitter (@DukeEnergy) and Facebook (Duke Energy).

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