Reportable Outages For PA Electric Utilties (5% Minimum Of Total Customers) Hit New Record In 2021
Severe weather in 2021 caused Pennsylvania to have the highest number of power outages since reliability record-keeping began nearly three decades ago, according to a new report by the state’s Public Utility Commission. Pennsylvania power utilities reported 63 outages last year, eclipsing the previous record of 52 blackouts in 2019. All of the outages were tied to severe weather: thunderstorms, high winds, freezing rain, hurricane remnants and heavy snow.
“While some of the outage events could be attributed to aging infrastructure, the number of reportable outage events due to severe weather appear to be increasing in frequency for all [electric distribution companies], including those that have strong infrastructure improvement plans,” the PUC said. A reportable outage is one that affects 2,500 customers or 5% of a utility's customers, whichever is smaller, for six or more consecutive hours.
The PUC has been tracking outages since 1993. The highest incidence of reportable outages occurred in four of the past five years. ncreasingly severe weather is a hallmark of current and future climate change in Pennsylvania, especially more frequent heavy rainfall events, according to the state’s 2021 climate impacts assessment. Hurricanes affecting the state are expected to grow more intense, while winter cyclones, like nor’easters, have already become more frequent.
The PUC said last year’s outages were primarily driven by heavy rain and high winds during spring and summer thunderstorms. Significant weather-related outages were also caused by the remnants of Hurricane Ida and multiple tornadoes. Overall, service to 1.9 million customers was interrupted.
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https://www.post-gazette.com/business/powersource/2022/10/13/pennsylvania-severe-weather-record-2021-power-outages/stories/202210120131