Electric News Releases

January 30, 2000

Virginia Power Adds Manpower For Super Bowl Sunday

RICHMOND, Va. -- Virginia Power sent additional line crews into action to restore electricity to customers who lost power because of the Super Bowl Sunday winter storm that coated central Virginia in a thick layer of ice.

As of 6 p.m., approximately 79,000 of the company's 2 million customers were out of service, mainly in the company's Central Region around Richmond.

"We have dispatched 200 linemen to outage repair locations around Richmond and we have significant additional resources coming from the other regions of our service area," said Tom Hyman, senior vice president-Electric Distribution.

Most of the damage is a result of ice building up on trees, which then snap under the weight and fall across power lines, said Hyman.

Virginia Power also has contractors, tree trimmers and linemen from neighboring utilities on stand-by. Company meteorologists predicted ice accumulations of up to three-quarters of an inch across central Virginia. Temperatures across central Virginia were expected to remain at or below freezing through the early morning hours Monday.

To report outages or downed lines, customers should call 1-888-667-3000. Customers without power should:

• Turn off all major appliances and electric heating systems to avoid overloading the electric system when power is restored.
• Use caution and follow directions carefully when using portable kerosene heaters.
• Avoid opening refrigerators and freezers to keep perishable food cold as long as possible.

Virginia Power is the principal subsidiary of Dominion Resources Inc. (NYSE: D), an energy company with headquarters in Richmond.

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