Significant snowfall across the state could result in power outages in communities east to west in the Commonwealth. Kentucky Public Service Commission spokesman Andrew Melnykovych says it may not be nearly as critical as when there is major ice accumulation, but power interruption is still possible. "Particularly if you are looking at situations where you've got like conifer type trees, pines and what not collect a lot of snow on their branches,” he said. “Certainly that’s potential for bringing some branches down on power lines and having some outages."
The PSC representative says eastern Kentucky could be a bit more vulnerable than other areas. "Just as a function of the terrain, it's more likely to get power outages because of the topography,” added Melnykovych. “And then of course when you're dealing with mountainous terrain, a lot of it relatively remote, it sometimes takes longer to get the power back on."
With increasing snowfall across the state comes the risk of electrical outages and the likelihood of many people utilizing power generators. Melnykovych says when operating a generator, it's important to isolate the house from the power grid. "Otherwise, what you wind up with is you're back feeding onto the grid and that can be a real danger for workers who are out there trying to get the power back on," added Melnykovych.
Melnykovych says another key recommendation is to never operate a generator in any type of enclosed space. ?
