ASHTON, Md. (7News) — Maryland residents in the Ashton and Sandy Spring areas of Montgomery County say they are growing increasingly frustrated after another major power outage left some without electricity for an extended period.
Residents tell 7News this is the third significant outage they have experienced in roughly a month, with each outage lasting two days or more.
The latest outage began around 4 p.m. Monday after severe storms moved through central Maryland.
At one point, residents were told to expect their power to be restored by 11 p.m. Monday.
For people living through another extended outage, the frustration is building.
“We make do the best we can, but yeah, it’s tough when you were sitting there in the dark,” resident Chris Batluck said.
Residents say repeated outages are costing them money and creating other problems, including spoiled food, lost work time and hotel expenses.
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John Foundas said he has resorted to using his vehicle to help keep his home running.
“I run a power inverter from my vehicle, which has to run, which cost gas. I run an AC cable into the house,” Foundas said. “We are all expected to kind of learn from mistakes in life and a utility company should be no different. Something needs to change in the way that this is kind of happening.”
Foundas said he does not blame the crews working to restore power, but believes more resources may be needed.
“It’s not about the crews not working hard, it’s about not having enough,” he said. “And with the increasing prices of what we pay and utilities, it seems like there isn’t equity there.”
BGE says the latest outage is part of what has been an unusually active summer storm season across central Maryland.
The utility says severe storms, including lightning, hail and several tornadoes, have caused downed trees and tree limbs. According to BGE, those trees and limbs have caused significant damage to poles and wires and contributed to repeated outages.
BGE says crews are on-site responding to the latest outages and that restoring power is a priority.
The utility also says it proactively made personal phone calls to affected customers.
“Safety is our top priority,” BGE said in a statement, adding that restoration efforts are being carefully coordinated to ensure power is returned as safely and quickly as possible.
BGE says it understands customers’ frustration with another power outage and is thanking customers for their patience as storms continue to move through Maryland.
BGE statement:
“This has been a very active storm season this summer in central Maryland, with severe storms, including lightning, hail, and a few tornados. The August 10 storm is the latest example of a storm that resulted in downed trees and tree limbs, which cause significant damage to poles and wires, and have brought about repeated outages.
We completely understand customers’ frustration with another power outage. Crews are on-site responding to their outages, and power restoration is a priority today. We proactively made personal phone calls to the affected customers. Safety is our top priority, and restoration efforts are carefully coordinated to ensure power is returned as safely and quickly as possible. We thank our customers for their patience as storms continue to pass through Maryland.”
Customers can report outages through BGE’s website, the company’s mobile app, by texting 69243, or by calling 877-778-2222.
BGE also says customers should call 911 or 877-778-7798 to report a gas odor and leave the area quickly.
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