Summer may bring proactive Public Safety Power Shutoffs (PSPS).  (A PSPS is when PGE turns off power in a limited, high-risk area to help reduce the risk of wildfire and to help protect people, property and the environment).  Learn about PSPS, see whether you’re in a high-risk area and get ready for wildfire season no matter where you are. 

Customers  can check with portlandgeneral.com/psps to confirm if their power may be impacted. PGE encourages everyone who may be impacted by a PSPS or a weather-related outage to make an emergency plan and prepare an outage kit using the preparedness information that PGE sent to customers and that is also available on PGE’s website. 

PGE communicates directly with customers through the news media, on portlandgeneral.com/psps and on social media, @PortlandGeneral on Twitter and @PortlandGeneralElectric on Facebook, among other channels.  Customer service is available at 503-228-6322 and service advisors can assist customers in more than 200 languages.

Oregon Adopts Public Safety Power Shutoff Rules for Utilities as Wildfire Season Approaches

PUC reminds Oregonians to be ready for wildfire season

SALEM, Ore. – The Oregon Public Utility Commission (PUC) recently approved permanent rules for investor-owned electric utilities, including Portland General Electric, PacifiCorp, and Idaho Power, regarding public safety power shutoffs (PSPSs). Temporary rules were implemented for the 2021 wildfire season while the PUC, utilities, public safety partners, and communities worked to finalize permanent rules. This is a timely decision as May is National Wildfire Awareness Month and wildfire season quickly approaches. 

A PSPS is an important safety measure designed to help protect people and communities in high fire-risk areas by proactively shutting off electricity during extreme and dangerous weather conditions. De-energizing power lines through a PSPS is a wildfire risk mitigation strategy of last resort because of the significant impacts the loss of power can have on communities and the extensive planning and communication that are needed to effectively implement them. These new rules lay out specific communication requirements for the utilities to inform public safety partners, state agencies, local jurisdictions, and the public of the need to implement a PSPS to mitigate wildfire risk, as well as updates at least every 24 hours until service is restored. 

“Extreme fire weather can clearly happen throughout Oregon,” said Letha Tawney, PUC Commissioner. “Implementing a PSPS is a complex decision that impacts communities including use of home medical devices, access to 911 services, and the ability to pump water. However, it’s a tool in the utility’s tool kit to help reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfires, if they determine necessary.” 

View the order detailing the PSPS rules.

The PUC is reminding Oregonians to get ready for the wildfire season and potential power outages. While the utilities have identified high risk zones, under extreme conditions PSPS could be utilized more widely.

How to Prepare for Wildfires Before They Happen

• Register to receive alerts from official sources. Download the FEMA app and receive real-time alerts from the National Weather Service for up to five locations nationwide. Also, sign up for emergency notifications with your local city and/or county, as well as outage alerts from your electric utility service provider. 
• Develop an emergency plan and make sure everyone in your household knows and understands what to do in the event of an evacuation.
• Create a circle of safety around your home, which is a fuel-free defensible space that can help reduce fire danger. Visit Keep Oregon Green for more information. 

How to Prepare for a Potential Power Outage

• Be two weeks ready – Gather food, medical supplies, batteries, pet supplies, among other things, needed by family members during an outage or evacuation for up to two weeks.  Learn more about what supplies to consider.
• For individuals with a medical condition that requires power, please contact your service provider in advance of an outage to register a Medical Certificate. This certification provides added benefits and helps the utility ensure they meet your needs in the event of an outage. Also, consider a backup generator or alternative location for power needs.
• Keep cell phones fully charged in anticipation of an outage. Consider a car-charger for cell phones and other electronic devices.
• Make sure your utility service provider has current contact information for notifications by updating your account online.
• Access outage and PSPS information online for Portland General Electric, Pacific Power, and Idaho Power

What to do During a Power Outage

• Contact your electric utility service provider to inform them of an outage. Below is the contact information for the investor-owned utilities regulated by the PUC. If uncertain which utility serves your area, visit https://www.oregon.gov/energy/energy-oregon/pages/find-your-utility.aspx. 
• Avoid downed power lines at all costs.
• Stay clear of utility crews working to restore service in your community.
• Use flashlights or battery operated lanterns for emergency lighting. Do not use candles or other potential fire hazards.
• Turn off lights and unplug electric appliances except for the refrigerator and freezer to help avoid a surge to the system when service is restored. After turning off all the lights, turn one light on to know when power has been restored. 
• Use generators safely – Do not run the generator inside the home or garage or anywhere near a window or vent, as these spaces can capture deadly levels of carbon monoxide. Learn more about proper use of a generator to avoid hazardous conditions. 
• Check on elderly neighbors or community members with special needs who might need additional assistance.

Natural Gas Tips

• If required to evacuate, no need to shut off natural gas.
• If natural gas appliances do not operate properly once electricity is restored, call your natural gas service provider.
• If natural gas service is shut off, do not turn on yourself. Call your natural gas service provider to restore service.
• If you smell natural gas, evacuate immediately and call 911.

Will You Get the Call? Register Today for CodeRED!

CodeRED is an emergency notification service that allows emergency officials to notify residents and businesses by telephone, cell phone, text message, email and social media regarding time-sensitive general and emergency notifications. Messages are shared using the emergency communication network system.

We use CodeRED for any message concerning the safety, property or welfare of the community. Messages may include AMBER alerts, notifications of hazardous traffic or road conditions, boil water advisories or evacuation notices. Registration is confidential and free. Personal information will not be shared or sold to third parties.

• Register Online
• Bi-lingual? Register online in English and then choose to receive CodeRed notifications in English, Spanish, Chinese, German, German, Japanese, Korean or Russian.
• Trouble registering? Please email Mike at Mikel@tigard-or.gov with the following information:
  • Name
  • Physical Address
  • Home Phone
  • Cell Phone
  • Cell Phone carrier
  • Email

How will I recognize a CodeRED message?

Once you are registered for the CodeRED system, contact your phone/data service provider to confirm that these CodeRED numbers are not blocked: 855-969-4636 (emergency messages) and 866-419-5000 (general messages). All CodeRED messages can be repeated by pressing any key. Do not call 911 for further information unless directed to do so or if you need immediate aid.

Download the CodeRed app!

Do you know what to do when the ground begins to shake?

Here’s a quick primer:

If you’re indoors, drop, cover, and hold on:

• Drop to the floor.
• Take cover under a desk, table or other sturdy furniture that’s positioned away from windows, fireplaces, wood stoves, and heavy furniture or appliances that may fall during the shaking.
• Hold onto your “cover” furniture and be prepared to move with it; remain here until the shaking stops.

If you’re outside:

• Go to an open area where you’re out of the way of falling debris; remain here until the shaking stops.
• If driving, pull to the side of the road and remain stopped until the quake is over.

Once the shaking stops:

• Shut off gas, water and electricity if lines are damaged.
• Assume all downed power lines are live and steer clear.
• Tune in to the radio or TV for instructions from emergency providers.
• Use phones only for life-threatening emergencies.
• Expect and be ready for aftershocks.

Make a Family Emergency Plan

Disaster can strike anywhere at any time. Your family may not be together when it happens, so it is important to plan and practice for various scenarios.

• Know the specific hazards in your community and how to respond.
• Plan for how you will contact one another.
• Plan for how you will get back together.
• Teach children how to respond to emergencies.

Research has proven that if you plan and practice in advance, you will be more resilient in an actual disaster. Important: review and practice the plan with your entire family twice a year (during time changes, for example). Here are a few tips:

• Identify an out-of-state emergency contact and instruct family to check in with them during emergencies and if separated.
• Complete the information on the opposite page and share with family and friends.
• Identify evacuation routes from home and designate a nearby location to meet to make sure everyone is okay.
• Know when and how to turn off water, electricity, and gas.
• Know emergency procedures in your workplace and for your children’s schools.

Make an Emergency Kit for Home, Work and Vehicle

You may not be at home when disaster strikes, keep a kit at home, at work and in your vehicle. Help yourself and your family remain self-sufficient during a disaster. Although putting a kit together may seem overwhelming, you can assemble a kit in small achievable steps. You may be surprised how many useful items you already have at home. Emergency kits include:

• Water, food, utensils and a can opener.
• Cell phone charger.
• Flashlight and extra batteries.
• Safety items including a whistle, flashlight, multipurpose tool, hard-soled shoes, gloves and blankets
• First aid kit including medications, baby wipes, sanitary items, and dust masks
• Copies of personal documents including IDs, family contacts and financial documents.
• Specialty supplies for children, pets, elderly and special needs family members

September is Back to School Month

• If your child is at home without an adult, make sure they know how to reach you or another trusted adult.
• Make sure your child knows how to respond to emergencies. Play the game to test your child’s emergency preparedness at www.ready.gov/kids/know-the-facts.

Resources:

There are many ways to help you become more resilient when disaster strikes. See some of the links below for specific hazard information, training and volunteer opportunities.

• Disaster Supplies Kits www.redcross.org
• Pets www.redcross.org/pets
• Livestock/Farm Animals www.prep4agthreats.org
• Five Minute Tasks www.take5tosurvive.com

Specific Hazard Information

• Avalanches www.nwac.us or www.avalanche.org
• Earthquakes https://earthquake.usgs.gov
• Fire Safety www.firewise.org and www.nfpa.org
• Flood Safety www.floodsmart.gov
• General Safety www.nsc.org
• Poison Center www.poison.org
• Tsunamis www.tsunami.noaa.gov

Know what to do before and during emergencies

Review hazards that can threaten your family and know how to respond. For example:

• Know what risks are associated with common hazards
• Take protective actions, such as Drop-Cover-Hold On during an earthquake
• Receive CPR and first aid training
• Donate blood

Debris burning is the number one cause of fires started by humans. Never burn without a permit or on a windy day. Work through the correct department that has jurisdiction over the type of burning you want to do. Consider alternatives to burning, such as chipping or recycling.

Protect Your Home from Wildfire

• Create a 30-foot non-combustible defensible space around your home. Stack firewood away from the home.
• Trim branches along driveways so that they are 14 feet off the ground, 14 feet from other surfaces and 10 feet from the roof and power lines.
• Use non-combustible roofing materials. Keep gutters free from debris and screen vents under eaves and decks.
• Keep yards watered and mowed. Plant low growing, less flammable plants near homes.
• Post your address in a location that is visible from all directions for at least 150 feet.

Prevent House Fires and Plan for Escape

• Never use water to put out a grease fire. Use baking soda, smother with a tight lid, or use an approved fire extinguisher.
• Install smoke alarms on the ceiling of every sleeping room, outside each separate sleeping area, and on every level of the home.
• Test smoke alarm batteries monthly. Replace the smoke alarm every 10 years.
• Install fire extinguishers close to an exit and only use on small fires.
• Create a Home Escape Plan including at least two routes from each room and a safe meeting place. Remember to practice this plan with your family.

Before a Flood

• Before you buy a home, investigate if there’s any history of flooding or if it’s in a mapped flood hazard zone.
• Consider flood insurance, even if you live outside of a flood hazard zone.
• Know your local evacuation routes and emergency assembly points

Prepare for a Flood

• Pack an evacuation kit and create a family emergency plan.
• Ask your local emergency management agency for sandbagging information.

During a Flood

• Stay informed. Check radio, television or online for information.
• Follow local officials’ instructions.
• If a flash flood is likely, move to higher ground immediately. Do not wait for instructions to move.

If You Evacuate

• Unplug electrical equipment, but do not touch electrical equipment if you are wet or standing in water.
• Secure your home. Close and lock doors and windows.
• Avoid walking through water. If you must, walk where the water is not moving. Use a stick to check the firmness of the ground. v Water over roadways can hide sink holes or other dangerous conditions and lead to drowning. Turn around instead of driving through the water.
• If floodwaters rise near you and you cannot drive safely, abandon the car. Move to higher ground if you can do so safely.
• Follow recommended evacuation routes.

Create a Support Team

• Have an alert tag or bracelet to identify your medical condition/allergies.
• “Buddy-up” with family or friends. Exchange contact info.
• Give team members a spare key to your residence.
• Make sure service animals know your team.
• Know the location of more than one medical facility in the area.
• Keep home medical equipment in good working order. Include copies of instruction manuals, etc. Show your team how to operate special equipment.

Make a “Go-Kit” & “Stay-Kit”

• Create a contact list that includes medical providers’ information, medication dosage and schedule, copies of insurance and Medicare cards.
• Keep one week’s supply of medications on-hand.
• Have extra magnifiers, eyeglasses, hearing-aid batteries, oxygen tanks, and notepads.

Medicine Dependency Preparedness

• Make an emergency supply kit with personal information.
• Keep an updated medicine/allergy list at all times.
• Create an evacuation plan, and leave early.
• Give your medical care team your emergency plan.
• Get a copy of your emergency diet.
• Plan for back-up transportation; make a list of regional dialysis facilities.
• Don’t wait before looking for services.

Tips when assisting functional needs

• Always ask how you can help before attempting assistance.
• The in-chair carry is the most desirable technique, if possible.
• You may not be able to tell if a person is mentally ill until you have begun the evacuation procedure.
• Speak naturally and directly to the individual.
• Ask if they have limitations or problems that may affect their safety.
• Ask/Look
  • For any type of special health instructions (bracelets/info posted)
  • Any medications they need.
  • Essential equipment and supplies (wheelchair, walker, oxygen, batteries, communication devices [head pointers, alphabet boards, speech synthesizers, etc.])

Heat can affect your pets too!

Do you have an emergency plan for your pets?

Your home is not only a safe haven for your family, but also for your pets. When disaster strikes, people often have no other option than to leave their homes. Depending on the severity of the disaster, you may be away from your home for a few hours or a few months. So what happens to the furry, four-legged members of your family? Here are some tips to help you prepare.

• Take time now to identify potential shelter sites or other safe havens where your pet could be housed temporarily. Many emergency shelters do not allow pets.
• Make sure your pet wears a tag with up-to-date information. Your pet’s ID tag should contain his name, owner contact information, and any urgent medical conditions. Other ID items include license and vaccination tags, or microchip IDs.
• Prepare a pet evacuation kit containing a pet carrier, collar, leash, harness, bedding, food/water dishes, medications, toys, pet first aid kit, and at least a three-day supply of food and water.
• It’s always preferable to take your pet with you in an emergency, but if you must leave your pet behind:
  • Put him in a secure area in your home.
  • Leave him at least 10 days of dry food and several water dishes.
  • Place signs on doors and windows describing the type and number of pets inside and providing owner contact information.
• Be prepared to describe your pet; having a photo of your pet can be especially helpful in reuniting pets and their owners.

Your emergency preparedness is only part of the solution. The next step is seeing how you can help others. Here are some ways to volunteer:

• Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) become licensed, trained and ready to respond in an emergency when amateur radio may be a reliable method of communication.
• American Red Cross provides free emergency preparedness education, trains volunteers to respond to disasters and provides shelter, food, crisis counseling and recovery planning to disaster victims.
• Community Emergency Response Teams (CERT) are community members trained in basic emergency response skills.
• Fire Corps members provide public education and response support for local Fire/EMS departments in non-emergency capacities.
• Map Your Neighborhood (MYN) is a neighborhood-based program that encourages and teaches preparedness, hazard mitigation and priority actions in an emergency.
• Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) are health professionals who provide critical medical skills during an emergency.
• Neighborhood Watch members partner with law enforcement to reduce crime.
• SERV-OR is a state emergency registries of health professional volunteers.
• Search and Rescue (SAR) organizations provide assistance for people who are lost or injured outdoors.
• Volunteers in Police Service (VIPS) perform public education, outreach and administrative tasks, so officers can respond to emergencies.
• Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD) are coalitions of faith-based and civic/humanitarian organizations that provide services to people after disasters.

Computers, tablets, smart phones, and social media make connecting with friends and family easier than ever before. Use these tools safely and appropriately.

Leave Phone Lines Free in a Disaster

• Resist the urge to call others if it’s not an emergency.
• Staying off the phone can save a life by allowing 911 calls to go through.

Communicate in Different Ways

• Communicating with loved ones will be a high priority in a disaster, but circumstances may impact your ability to reach them.
• If phone lines are overloaded, texting may still work.
• Make sure you have alternate ways to contact everyone.

Cyber Security

• Don’t access sensitive accounts like banking or online shopping on public Wi-Fi or unsecured networks. This can leave you subject to identity theft and computer viruses.
• Install apps only from trusted sites. Malicious apps can share information without your knowledge.
• Treat smart phones like a computer. Secure it with a password.
• Make sure your home network is password protected or encrypted. Refer to the instruction manual for the wireless network router.
• Lost or stolen devices can provide strangers with your personal or corporate data.

Enable Encryption

• Keep security software updated.
• Think before you click, download, forward, or open anything. Beware of anything from unknown sources.

Snow and Ice

• If a storm is forecasted: ensure you have a full tank of gas in your vehicle, enough food, water, adequate clothing/blankets and heating fuel (seasoned firewood, generator, etc.) in the event of power outages or if you be-come isolated.
• Maintain ventilation when using kerosene heaters to avoid build-up of toxic fumes. Re-fuel kerosene heaters outside and keep them at least three feet from flammable objects.
• Keep snow shovels and sand to remove snow and help with traction.
• Insulate your pipes to prevent from freezing.
• If temperatures drop below freezing, prevent from pipes freezing by turning on faucets to allow a slow drip.

Wind

• Before a windstorm conduct a home safety evaluation, including garage door and nearby trees. If you have an electric garage door opener, locate the manual override.
• If you are indoors during a windstorm, move away from windows or other objects that could fall.
• If you are outdoors, move into a building and avoid downed electricity power lines, utility poles and trees.
• If you are driving, pull off the road away from trees, overpasses and powerlines.

Landslides

• Listen for unusual sounds that might indicate moving debris such as trees cracking or boulders knocking together.
• Avoid river valleys or low-lying areas.
• Be alert when driving and watch for collapsed pavement, mud or fallen rocks.