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Repairing the electrical system

Field crews, sometimes by helicopter, make the initial review of the electric system. They identify damage to key facilities, such as power plants, substations and main power lines. Their assessments help us determine if GRU should request mutual aid from outside crews.
After the initial review, patrol teams conduct neighborhood-by-neighborhood assessments. These teams report electrical-equipment damage and other needed repairs.
Customers can assist with power restoration by inspecting their electric equipment to determine whether their home or business is ready to receive power. Damaged equipment should be repaired prior to power being restored. Learn how to inspect electric utilities at your home or business.

First priorities for power restoration include hospitals, law enforcement, power plants, water plants, wastewater plants, lift stations and fire stations.
Crews then work to fix problems that will benefit the most people in the shortest amount of time. GRU does not give preferential treatment to elected officials or other individuals. Nor is work assigned according to when an outage is reported, where a customer lives or the status of a customer's account.

Repair crews will restore electricity to your house as soon as possible. For safety reasons, crews cannot work outside when winds are 35 mph or above.
Damage to electrical circuits can lead to power loss over a broad area, so repairs to the primary electric system may restore power to large number of customers. That means you may never see the crew that is working several miles away to restore power to your neighborhood.
To restore electric service as quickly and safely as possible, GRU only removes the vegetation necessary from high voltage lines. Customers should hire a professional to clear any trees or branches affecting low-voltage service wires.
As part of the post-storm line clearing process, GRU will leave the damaged trees, limbs or branches on the property for disposal. Customers should organize this debris and other storm-damaged materials into piles and make arrangements for removal. Learn more about downed trees and debris cleanup .
Once service is restored, GRU makes every effort to keep it on. However, some interruptions may occur as other parts of the system are repaired.