Restoration Work Continues for Remaining 137,000 Affected by Wind Storm AKRON, Ohio, Feb. 12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Service to more than 500,000 FirstEnergy Corp. electric utility customers was interrupted by a sustained wind storm - with gusts measuring more than 60 mph - that began moving through the company's Ohio service areas last night, and continued into its Pennsylvania and New Jersey service areas today. This outage total represents an additional 110,000 customers affected since 10 a.m. as the high winds moved across the eastern portion of FirstEnergy's service territory. As of 5 p.m. Thursday, approximately 138,000 customers remain out of service due to high winds that caused downed branches, trees and power lines in the Ohio Edison, Cleveland Electric Illuminating Company (CEI), Toledo Edison, Pennsylvania Power (Penn Power), Pennsylvania Electric (Penelec), Metropolitan Edison (Met-Ed) and Jersey Central Power & Light (JCP&L) service areas. The hardest hit areas include Ashtabula, Youngstown, Salem and Warren in Ohio; Altoona, Erie and Johnstown in Pennsylvania; and in widely scattered locations in northern and central New Jersey. Due to the extent of the damage, complete power restoration may extend into the weekend in some areas. By utility operating company, the approximate total outages and number of customers who remain without service: -- Ohio Edison - 172,000 customers affected, 23,000 without service -- CEI - 61,000 customers affected, 35,000 without service -- Toledo Edison - 18,800 customers affected, 74 without service -- Penn Power - 28,000 customers affected, 5,400 without service -- Penelec - 108,000 customers affected, 42,000 without service -- Met-Ed - 30,000 customers affected, 5,800 without service -- JCP&L - 84,000 customers affected, 25,600 without service Customers are cautioned never to touch downed lines. Always assume downed wires are carrying electricity, and keep children and pets away from downed wires. Never try to remove trees or limbs from power lines because the trees and limbs could conduct electricity. Instead, customers should wait for emergency services or utility crews to arrive. FirstEnergy urges customers to use the automated outage reporting line - 1-888-544-4877 (1-888-LIGHTSS) - to report any outages. Customers responding to downed lines are urged to follow the prompts or to report the downed lines to their local police or fire departments. Tips for customers without power: -- Avoid opening the refrigerator or freezer. A full freezer can keep food frozen for up to three days if it's kept closed. -- Unplug major appliances until after the power has been restored. Keep one light connected so you will know when the power is back on. -- Never use a stove or oven to heat your home. -- Burning candles should never be left unattended in a house. -- Gasoline-powered generators should never be operated inside a home or attached garage. DATASOURCE: FirstEnergy CONTACT: Ellen Raines, FirstEnergy Corp., +1-330-384-5808 Web site: http://www.firstenergycorp.com/

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