PORTLAND, Ore. — More winter weather could be on the way for people living in the Portland area, and it's expected to hit Friday afternoon and into Saturday. Multiple organizations, including Portland General Electric, Pacific Power and Portland Fire & Rescue are urging people to make sure they have a severe weather and power outage kit ready to go.
PGE recommends that people have these items in their outage kit:
- Flashlight or headlamps with fresh batteries
- Battery-powered or hand-crank radio and alarm clock or watch
- Car charger for cell phones, laptops and tablets
- A 72-hour supply of ready-to-eat food and water
- Extra blankets
- Bottled water for the people and animals in your family
"Worst-case scenario, we are recommending Oregonians have an emergency plan for up to 72 hours without essential services," said Simon Gutierrez, Pacific Power spokesperson.
But power companies are also working on a game plan for dealing with potential outages.
"Staging the right resources where we think the biggest impacts are going to be, bringing in additional crews and things like that, so that if this storm causes outages, we are ready to quickly react," said Drew Hanson, spokesperson for PGE.
POWER OUTAGES: PGE | Pacific Power | Clark Public Utilities
Portland Fire & Rescue is also urging homeowners to protect against frozen pipes. Rick Graves, a spokesperson for Portland Fire & Rescue, said they responded to hundreds of calls from homeowners that needed their water shut off after freezing temperatures blanketed the area in February of 2023.
“If you have a rupture, you are not going to know until it heats up, then you need to know how to shut your water off, so you reduce the amount of time you have water flow, open water flow in your home,” said Graves.
Graves added that it's key for homeowners to locate the shutoff valve outside of the home, marking it with a landscaping flag or another item that can be found easily if there is snow on the ground. Homeowners will also have to make sure they have a key that can turn the water supply on and off; Graves recommends picking one up at a local hardware store.