ComEd Restores More Than 90 Percent of Customers Affected by Sunday's Storm

CHICAGO, Nov. 18, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Following fast moving storms that ripped through northern Illinois on Sunday and interrupted electrical service to more than 200,000 customers, ComEd has restored power to more than 90 percent of customers affected. As of 10:30 a.m., approximately 16,000 remain out of service with nearly 9,000 of these customers residing in ComEd's south region.  ComEd expects all but the most significantly affected areas to be restored by midnight Tuesday.  Restoration efforts in the hardest hit areas may extend into Wednesday.

More than 570 ComEd and contractor crews are working safely and diligently to restore service to customers, including crews from Michigan, Iowa and Wisconsin.  Damage includes downed power lines, broken poles and toppled transmission towers.  

"The safety of our employees and customers is ComEd's highest priority.  We are working around the clock to restore power safely and quickly," said Terence R. Donnelly, executive vice president and chief operating officer for ComEd.  "We know that power outages disrupt the lives and businesses of our customers, and ComEd appreciates our customers' patience as we work to restore power."

ComEd urges customers to contact the utility immediately if they are experiencing a power outage.  Customers can text OUT to 26633 (COMED) to report their outage and receive restoration information.

ComEd also offers a mobile app for iPhone and Android® smart phones that gives customers the ability to report power outages and manage their accounts.  In addition, customers can report outages through the website at ComEd.com or on ComEd's Facebook page at Facebook.com/ComEd or by calling 1-800 EDISON1 (1-800-334-7661). Spanish-speaking customers should call 1-800-95-LUCES (1-800-955-8237).

For outage updates, customers can access ComEd's mobile-enabled, interactive outage map now available at ComEd.com/map.  The color-coded map allows customers to easily find information on the location and size of outages, get estimated power restoration times and crew locations.  Information is updated every 30 minutes. Customers also can follow the company on Twitter @ComEd or on Facebook at Facebook.com/ComEd to stay up-to-date on the latest ComEd storm restoration information.

Public safety is paramount during storms and ComEd encourages the public to remember to take the following precautions:

• If you encounter a downed power line, immediately call ComEd at 1-800-EDISON1 (1-800-334-7661) or access our website at ComEd.com and report the location. Spanish-speaking customers should call 1-800-95-LUCES (1-800-955-8237).  Never approach a downed power line.  Always assume a power line is energized and extremely dangerous.
• Check on elderly and other sensitive family members and neighbors to ensure their safety and make alternate arrangements, as it may be some time before their power is restored.

ComEd remains focused on enhancing its storm response efforts.  Since 2011 when the worst storms in ComEd history struck northern Illinois, the company formed a storm improvement taskforce and implemented approximately 60 enhancements that helped provide a significant improvement in storm restoration times in major storms last summer.  For example, ComEd added: more first responders; a state-of-the-art mobile command center to deploy to hardest-hit areas; and customer service enhancements such as the interactive online outage map, mobile application for smart phones, mobile-enabled website, and two-way text messaging.

Commonwealth Edison Company (ComEd) is a unit of Chicago-based Exelon Corporation (NYSE: EXC), the nation's leading competitive energy provider, with approximately 6.6 million customers. ComEd provides service to approximately 3.8 million customers across northern Illinois, or 70 percent of the state's population.

Customer Contact:
1-800-EDISON-1 (1-800-334-7661)

SOURCE ComEd