# Help update me on my power outage

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-update-me-on-my-power-outage/666692>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [August 20, 2013, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-update-me-on-my-power-outage/666692 "2013-08-20T04:10:02Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\
**Post date:** [August 20, 2013, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-update-me-on-my-power-outage/666692/1 "2013-08-20T04:10:02Z")

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I’m without power. I think the whole town is. Visalia, CA. I’ve got limited Internet on my phone and losing power quickly. The [sce.com](http://sce.com) website is eating up my juice.

Sketchy info is that there was an explosion at a substation. I’d be grateful for any info a doper could find for me. Thanks. My zip code is 93291.

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**Author:** ![Dag\_Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@Dag\_Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dag_Otto)\
**Post date:** [August 20, 2013, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-update-me-on-my-power-outage/666692/2 "2013-08-20T04:21:35Z")

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Looks like a large area is affected. I’d plan for an extended outage of about 12 to 24 hours. Keep the openings of the refrigerator and freezer to a minimum. You might also want to gather 5-10 gallons of water just in case the water utility goes out.

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**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\
**Post date:** [August 20, 2013, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-update-me-on-my-power-outage/666692/3 "2013-08-20T04:23:48Z")

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From SCE:

> [@](#):
>
> Visalia  
> Outage Alert Note: 582620  
> Outage Type: Unplanned  
> Estimated Restoration Time: August 20, 2013, 7:00 pm  
> Last Updated: August 19, 2013, 8:50 pm  
> Start Time: August 19, 2013, 7:00 pm  
> Customers Impacted: 479  
> Cause: Lightning  
> Crew Status: We have notified our repair crews.  
> Additional Info: Equipment Fire

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**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\
**Post date:** [August 20, 2013, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-update-me-on-my-power-outage/666692/4 "2013-08-20T04:44:51Z")

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Thanks for the updates and suggestions so far.