Memphis Light, Gas & Water is once again readying for rolling blackouts.
The plan was announced Friday morning and rescinded within an hour. The blackouts are to drop electricity demand throughout the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) service area due to cold winter temperatures. MLGW said this is necessary to avoid major outages.
If needed, the blackouts here could have begun as early as 6 p.m., according to MLGW. Power to certain areas could go out for 30 minutes two to three times per day on average, MLGW said.
The blackouts will only stop when TVA says it is safe to end them. MLGW said it will notify customers and restore power when they get word from TVA.
Here is the plan from MLGW:
When ordered, temporary outages will begin in the areas of North of Downtown in the vicinity of Ben Hooks Library, and North Germantown.
If necessary, the next areas affected will be areas near Central Gardens/Midtown, Getwell and 240, South Germantown/Winchester and East Germantown/West Collierville.
As needed, we will rotate in 30-minute intervals throughout the rest of the service area.
MLGW said residents in Southeastern Memphis and southeastern unincorporated Shelby County are currently experiencing low water pressure. Customers in these areas are asked to limit water usage to essential use only until further notice.
UPDATE: Memphis Light, Gas & Water (MLGW) paused a series of rolling blackouts Friday, less than an hour after starting them.
ORIGINAL POST:
Rolling blackouts are expected in Memphis Friday as the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) struggles to meet electricity demand in winter conditions.
Memphis Light, Gas & Water (MLGW) said rolling blackouts will begin at 11:30 a.m. Service to effected areas will last 30 minutes and customers can average two outages per day. Critical facilities like water hospitals, pumping stations, and airports won’t be effected.
MLGW asks customers to not report outages unless they last longer than one hour. The utility said it will announce when the blackouts are over.
The blackouts come as TVA required all local power companies to drop between 5 percent to 10 percent of their total electrical load. MLGW said “this is necessary to avoid major outages.”
“We apologize for the inconvenience and appreciate your patience,” MLGW said in a statement.
TVA said this morning it is “keeping you and your family warm and the holiday lights on.”
The power supplier was roasted on Twitter:
TVA then tweeted this: