With summer storm season in full swing, Public Service Electric and Gas Co. (PSE&G) has made it easier for customers to track the status of power outages using its online Outage Map.
PSE&G recently adopted new technology to enhance the mobile-friendly map, providing more detailed information about outages and when power will be restored. When the lights go out, customers can now log on to see:
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The location of the outage at the neighborhood level.
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The number of customers affected by the outage.
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When the outage was reported, and the time PSE&G expects service to be restored.
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The cause of the outage, if available, such as equipment failure or animal contact.
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During storms, the status of the job in the restoration process — whether crews are assessing the outage, making repairs or removing a tree.
"Our customers have said they wanted more information about power outages, especially during storms like Sandy," said John Latka, vice president of electric operations for PSE&G. "With this major upgrade to our Outage Map, customers can now make more informed decisions for their family or their business during an outage."
Customers can navigate the Outage Map either by using their cursor to scroll or by typing their address into the search bar. Color-coded triangles indicate the location of power outages and the number of customers affected. When the cursor is placed over a triangle, a dialogue box pops up with additional information about the outage. The information on the map is updated every 15 minutes.
The Outage Map is part of PSE&G's Storm Center, an online portal for customers to get information about how they should prepare before, during and after severe weather. The Outage Map will be updated during storms with special alerts and highlight the location of mobile Customer Service Centers.
To report power outages, customers should call PSE&G's Customer Service line at 1-800-436-PSEG or log in to My Account on www.pseg.com. Customers also can register for text and email alerts at www.pseg.com/myaccount.
The Outage Map can be found online at http://outagecenter.pseg.com.
