National Grid urges East Midlands public to be storm-wise this winter

"Don’t get left in the dark by storms" is the message to residents across the East Midlands this winter.

With extreme winter weather such as high winds, heavy rain and plummeting temperatures National Grid is urging its 2.7 million customers in the region to be storm-wise by completing a power cut checklist.

The company’s advice includes:

• Keep the free electricity emergency number handy — call 105 to report a power cut, 24 hours a day.

• Prepare your home — have a torch and an analogue phone ready (cordless or digital phones don’t work in a power cut). A wind-up, solar or battery-powered radio will enable you to listen to local updates. Also have an external battery charging pack available so you can charge smart phones or tablets. Protect sensitive and valuable electrical equipment with a surge protector.

• Keep an eye out — check weather forecasts and if there’s a power cut see if neighbours need help.

• Get extra support — vulnerable households can get extra support by signing up to National Grid’s Priority Services Register. It’s a free service for anyone who is elderly, disabled, has children under 5 years old or relies on powered medical equipment. As part of the service, customers are kept informed as much as possible of power cuts affecting their home and are given special help, if needed, through the British Red Cross.

The company has been working to minimise power cut disruption in East Midlands this winter by carrying out critical repairs and maintenance, inspecting thousands of miles of overhead lines and tree trimming where necessary to protect cables.

Graham Halladay, operations director at National Grid Electricity Distribution, said: “The electricity supply in our region is more reliable than ever, however winter power cuts can still happen due to storms and challenging weather.

"If they do, our teams are on hand 24/7 to restore power as quickly and safely as possible.

“We work throughout the year to reinforce our network and, when bad weather is forecast, we make sure additional engineering and operational teams are on standby, as well as extra contact and control centre colleagues to manage the electricity network and to help customers with enquiries.

“At this time of year we also encourage any customers in vulnerable circumstances to contact us to find out about the support they can receive by joining our Priority Services Register.”