At Chariton Valley Electric Cooperative our goal is to get the power back on following a service interruption for everyone in the most efficient, safe manner while restoring electricity to the greatest number of consumers in the shortest amount of time. We are extremely sensitive to the fact that businesses have unique concerns when it comes to reliability. The major cause of outages is damage caused by fallen trees. That is why CVEC has an ongoing right-of-way maintenance program.

Here is CVEC’s step-by-step process for restoring power.

Step 1: Line crews remove power lines from roadways first
Step 2: We check our distribution substations, and if the problem can be corrected at this level, power may be restored to a large number of members.
Step 3: Major distribution feeders are repaired. If energy cannot be distributer over these lines, your home will not receive power.
Step 4: Line crews fix the remaining outages on the supply lines, called tap lines. Tap lines are the lines that bring power to your home from the distribution feeder.
Step 5: We repair individual service lines. This explains why you may have no power when your neighbor does.

What should you do if the lights go out?

It doesn’t happen often, but when it does, know what to check first to get your power restored sooner.

• First check your breakers or fuses on your own system to see if they have tripped.
• If so, the problem is most likely with your own wiring and an electrician is needed.
• Next, check your meter to see if it is still working.
• If so, there is power to the meter and an electrician should be called.

To report an outage call 641-932-7126 or 800-475-1702. Someone is available to take your call 24 hours a day 7 days a week!