National Grid Continues to Progress Power Restoration; Focused on Labor-intensive Process of Neighborhood Repairs

WALTHAM, MA - National Grid is responding to a powerful Nor'easter that left over 500,000 total customers without power in New England. As of Thursday morning, National Grid had restored over 86% of impacted customers in Massachusetts and 99% of impacted customers in Rhode Island, totaling over 444,200 customer restorations since the storm began Tuesday night.

Crews worked throughout last night restoring an additional 41,000 customers since last evening. As of 11:00 AM there were 55,242 (54,305 in MA; 937 in RI) customers who remained without power. Crews have come from as far as North Carolina, Virginia, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Canada to assist through National Grid's mutual aid network.

"Our crews have been working tirelessly since the storm began and have made great progress, but we still have a great deal of work to do in order to get every customer restored," said Michael McCallan, Vice President of New England Electric Operations. "As we get to repairs within individual neighborhoods, the work is more time-intensive and complex. For example, on the Massachusetts South Shore, the storm has damaged an estimated 150 poles. Our crews are working safely to repair this significant damage, but setting poles is a labor-intense process that can take up to eight hours for a single pole."

Damage from the storm was widespread, with the hardest hit areas ranging from Central Massachusetts east and throughout Rhode Island. The majority of remaining outages are in the Massachusetts communities of Brockton, Pembroke, Weymouth, and Scituate.

National Grid will continue to update estimated time of restoration (ETRs) in its outage central map today to provide the public with town level estimates - representing the estimated time the last customer in the community can expect to be restored.

Estimating the time of power restoration is not an exact science. Work volume, the cause of the outage, and the extent of the damage can all affect time estimates. It's also normal for outage numbers and ETRs to fluctuate. The numbers can go up and down as an ongoing storm causes new outages and/or as we de-energize lines to make conditions safe for repairs and restoration. Additionally, there could be new outages that occur that are separate from storm-related outages.

The following graphic illustrates our storm restoration process:

The Company offers the following tips and reminders:

Customers Should Stay Connected:

• Report power outages at www.nationalgridus.com or call 1-800-465-1212.
• Use your mobile device to track outage information and storm-related safety tips through National Grid's mobile site accessible at www.ngrid.com/mobile.
• Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter and Instagram; we post all the latest storm and restoration updates.
• Track outages and estimated restoration times at www.nationalgridus.com/outage-central
• To stay connected during storms and outages, text to 64743 using any of the below commands.
  • REG to sign up for text alerts
  • OUT to report an outage
  • SUM followed by your town, county, or state to get a summary of outages in your area
  • HELP for the full list of commands

• Customers are also encouraged to ensure National Grid has their current email address and phone number on file. This helps us communicate important updates regarding storms or outages. Customers can review their contact information at ngrid.com by clicking on "sign in/register."

Stay Safe:

• Never touch downed power lines, and always assume that any fallen lines are live electric wires. If you see one, report it immediately to National Grid or your local emergency response organization.
• Power problems can sometimes interrupt public water supply systems or disable well pumps, so it's an especially good idea to keep a supply of bottled drinking water handy, as well as some canned food.
• People who depend on electric-powered life support equipment, such as a respirator, should let National Grid know. To register as a life support customer, call the company's Customer Service Center at 1-800-322-3223.
• Check on elderly family members, neighbors and others who may need assistance during an outage period.

Electric Safety:

• If you use a generator to supply power during an outage, be sure to operate it outdoors. Before operating generators, disconnect from National Grid's system by shutting off the main breaker located in the electric service panel. Failure to do this could jeopardize the safety of line crews and the public.
• If you lose power, turn off any appliances that were on when the power went off, but leave one light on so you will know when power is restored.
• Reminder: It's not safe to work in an elevated bucket during periods of increased wind gusts. Our line workers begin restoration work only when conditions are deemed safe.

Gas Safety:

If you suspect a natural gas leak:

• GetOut- All occupants should leave the house immediately. Do not use the telephone or light switches for any reason.
• CallUs- After leaving the house and reaching a safe environment, call the National Grid 24-hour gas emergency numbers: New England:1-800-640-1595
• Stay Out - Do not return to your home until National Grid tells you it is safe.

Additional safety information may be found at https://www.nationalgridus.com/MA-Home/Storm-Safety/