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Stay away from downed power lines

Keep your distance from any downed power line, and report it to the police or fire department, or call us at 800-286-2000 (860-947-2000 in Hartford/Meriden). Treat all wires — even those that are hanging or downed — as if they are "live" (energized). Don't drive over downed lines, and if a downed line is in or near water, keep your distance from the water, even a little puddle. And whether a power line is down or not, don't touch anything that might be in contact with it, such as a tree limb.

Storm Center

If you experience an outage, call us anytime at 1-800-286-2000 (860-947-2000 in Hartford/Meriden).

View the Outage Map-Details

Are you ready for a storm? It takes at least two things to get through the effects of a severe storm: preparation and patience. Read suggestions to help you prepare and remain safe, or peruse some frequently asked questions.

Read about how CL&P prepares before a storm arrives and what we do after a storm hits.

View the list of our top 10 outages, or read how we prepare the system to withstand the strain caused by the peak demand of summer.

Power outages happen for a number of reasons:

  • Weather - Winds, heavy snow and thick ice on trees or tree limbs can bring trees into contact with our wires and cause an outage. Lightning can also strike our equipment or trees near it.
  • Nature - Animals occasionally contact parts of our system in a way that causes an outage. Large birds, squirrels and raccoons are frequent culprits.
  • Motor vehicle accidents - When a motor vehicle hits a pole and damages or breaks it, power outages sometimes result.
  • Cranes and excavation machinery sometimes cause outages.
  • Equipment failures in any part of our system: overhead, underground, substations, transmission lines, etc.
  • Vandalism - Our equipment is sometimes damaged by gunshot or objects thrown at it.
  • Routine, planned maintenance - On occasion, and with notice to our customers, we intentionally de-energize an area to perform necessary maintenance where safety to the worker prohibits working on "live" lines.