The recent snowstorm on Wednesday February 24, 2010 dropped approximately 8” of slushy snow on the Worcester regional area.  Large amounts of rain followed on Thursday February 25, 2010, and snow fell again on Friday February 27, 2010.

This is not the kind of weather that the Sterling Municipal Light Department (SMLD) finds appealing.  As we all know from December 2008, these conditions can be perilous.  The SMLD is fortunate to have completed permanent repair work from that December 2008 Ice Storm, along with ongoing tree-trimming work, and having a strong power system.  Mix the proactive work in with Wednesday’s storm and we only had three (3) minor outages in Sterling.  These customers were back on line within a short period of time.

What we learned from this particular storm (and from the more than a dozen phone calls that we received) however was that our community often sees downed wires and thinks that they are all SMLD power wires.  Calls on Wednesday were actually relative to cable television (Comcast) and/or phone wires (Verizon). 

In an effort to help us focus on our primary work, the electric utility power lines, please be very descriptive when you call into the SMLD Customer Service team to report downed wires.  The more detail that you give us will help us to determine the correct course of action.  For instance, did you hear a noise prior to your power outage?  Do you still have power?  It is important to note if you still have power, but no cable or telephone service.

The SMLD would like to help its customers to identify cable television, phone and power wires.  Please see the picture below showing a detailed image of these lines with each labeled for your information.   Please recognize that the SMLD is not responsible for Comcast or Verizon lines, or their exact location to your residence.  This general diagram is being provided to assist the SMLD in responding to power outages quickly and effectively when you report them to us.  As always, please call the SMLD Customer Service team at 978-422-8267 with any questions.  Thank you.