SP Energy Networks engineers have continued to restore power, working through the night in some areas, with over 14,000 customers remaining without power this morning and over 165,000 now restored in Central and Southern Scotland.
Poor weather conditions across the weekend have affected progress in some areas to restore power, with a yellow weather warning remaining in place until 10am Sunday morning. There are still issues with access in some areas due to fallen trees and hard to reach locations.
Storm Éowyn’s 100mph winds – one of the worst storms to hit central Southern Scotland in decades – caused extensive damage to the electricity network with severe damage in many areas which will take some time to repair.
Over 200,000 properties have been affected across SP Energy Networks two licence areas since the start of the storm. SP Energy Networks has taken over 52,000 calls; the equivalent of a month’s calls each day. In addition to extra customer service colleagues, SP Energy Networks has hundreds of engineers working across the country to restore power as quickly and safely as possible and additional people and resources have arrived from less affected areas to support.
Aileen Rourke, SP Energy Networks Scotland Distribution Director, said: “Our dedicated engineers have continued to work through the night to get many more people back on supply.
“Unfortunately, the severity of the storm and damage, combined with the continued poor weather conditions, means in some areas it could take several days to restore power. We know it is difficult for customers and are updating them on likely timescales to help them plan for the coming days.
“Hotel accommodation is being provided where possible and food vouchers as well as food trucks in the most badly affected areas. We’ve also worked with local authorities and other partners to arrange warm spaces for people to go to charge phones and get hot food and drinks.
“We’ve got our full resources working hard across the country to get people back on supply and will continue to work closely with the Scottish Government, local authorities and other services to support customers.”
Food vans have been sent to the areas most impacted by the storm and their current locations can be found on SP Energy Networks website and social media channels.
SP Energy Networks has been proactively contacting customers its Priority Services Register to offer advice, support and practical help dependant on their circumstances.
For anyone experiencing a new power cut please report it to us by calling the free, national emergency helpline 105.
SP Energy Networks invests billions to ensure its network is safe, reliable and resilient, but extreme weather conditions like Storm Eowyn’s strong winds increases the chance of power cuts.
For more information on what to do in the event of a power emergency, visit spenergynetworks.co.uk
