We are asking everyone who receives electricity from GreyStone Power to conserve power. The extremely cold temperatures across the country have caused utilities in some of our neighboring states to institute rolling blackouts. Georgia’s electric co-ops are asking their members to conserve energy to contribute to efforts to maintain reliable service during these extreme weather conditions. 
 
At GreyStone, we have worked with our generation and transmission partners to prepare for the extreme winter weather that has moved in, including staging work crews and securing supplies and fuel needed for power plants. We are working in coordination with neighboring EMCs and utilities across the regional Southeast.
 
We began working quickly to restore power outages, and those efforts have been successful. Our workers will continue to tackle localized outages if they occur. The scope and expected duration of the plunging temperatures are putting unusual stress on the nation’s energy grid, with six in 10 Americans under a severe-weather alert.
 
We urge our members to consider the following energy conservation measures:

• Turn off unneeded lights and electronics.
• Lower thermostats to 68 or lower during the day and drop them further at night, while maintaining a safe environment, and when you’re away from home. 
• Caulk or weather strip around windows, exterior doors and any gaps.
• Close off unused rooms and close heater vents to concentrate heat where people are in your home or workplace.
• Delay doing laundry and running dishwashers, and use cold water.
• Take short showers since heating water is a significant share of home energy requirements.
• Consider reading a book, talking with friends or playing games as a family instead of electronic games, videos and streaming movies.
• Ensure the filters in your heating system are replaced regularly.
• Businesses are asked to begin holiday vacations early, saving electricity supply for residential use.

Although we’re working hard to avoid any power outages, here are some ways to be prepared:

• Have non-perishable foods on hand, such as canned fruit, powdered milk, peanut butter, bread and crackers.
• Have a manual can opener.
• Have blankets, sleeping bags and extra clothes, including hats.
• Have flashlights, battery-powered lanterns and extra batteries.
• For those with fireplaces, be sure to have kindling and a good supply of wood.
• For those using a generator, follow manufacturer’s operating instructions and follow all safety guidelines to protect utility employees from serious or fatal injuries. 

For more storm preparation tips and outage updates, visit the Storm Center at www.greystonepower.com/stormcenter. GreyStone members who experience an outage can text OUT to 81492. For those members not yet taking advantage of text alerts, send ENROLL to 81492 to sign up. Members may also report outages through www.greystonepower.com or by calling 866-GREYSTONE (473-9786). If extensive outages occur, the co-op will update members through social media and www.greystonepower.com.