SHEPD teams continuing to restore power
04 Jan 2012
Scottish Hydro Electric Power Distribution (SHEPD) teams are continuing to restore electricity supplies to 9,000 homes still without power at lunchtime today, following the substantial damage caused to the electricity network by the exceptional weather. At the peak there were around 40,000 customers without power as a result of over 100 separate major incidents, and several hundred smaller incidents, affecting the electricity network in the north of Scotland, the Western and Northern Isles.
Around 700 engineers resumed working in difficult conditions at 6:30am to restore electricity supplies to the 11,000 customers who were without power first thing this morning. These engineers will continue to work late into the night in order to restore supply to as many homes as possible. Many of the outstanding problems are where there are multiple points of damage to the network infrastructure and access to parts of the damaged network continues to be hampered by roads blocked by trees and other wind borne debris.
It is expected that the majority of customers will have their electricity supply restored by late this evening, although we expect that some customers, particularly in outlying areas could still be without electricity until tomorrow. The breakdown of the areas affected and the numbers of homes without power is now as follows:
Argyll and West around 7,000 customers
Tayside around 2,000 customers
Every effort is being made by SHEPD teams to contact registered priority customers who may still be without power to arrange mobile generation wherever possible and to advise where SHEPD is working with local authorities through Strategic Co-ordinating Groups to provide facilities in the community. Customers who are concerned about vulnerable relatives or neighbours who may be without power, should call us on 0800 300 999.
We are regularly updating our website (www.ssepd.co.uk) and using social media (www.twitter.com/ssepd) as, increasingly, customers are using smart phones and other mobile devices to get information.
We are also keeping a close eye on the weather forecast over the next 48 hours, where forecasted strong winds may cause additional damage particularly in areas where trees have been weakened.
SHEPD is the company responsible for distributing electricity in Scotland, north of the Central Belt, and has been making detailed contingency plans to minimise the potential impact of the storms on the electricity network in the North of Scotland.