Winds are gonna be super bad. Trees and poles are definitely going to be knocked over. Without question, there will be power outages.

How widespread? Where? Nobody knows. But it is DEFINITELY going to happen somewhere at some point.

Being on Mount Washington, I feel like this does not bode well for me lol

I'd say the chances are fairly high. I remember the wind storm of Feb 2019 and I'm expecting similar effects but maybe less in duration. I am at the beginning of my circuit so I don't expect to lose power unless a substation is out, but if I were closer to the end of the circuit I would definitely expect to be without for a day or two.

Edit: If anyone is affected by power outages, the City is operating warming centers also. (But apparently waiting till Saturday to open them?)

Do you know of a map or website or whatever that could show where a house is located along a circuit? I never knew this was a thing, and I’m curious where my place is located along the line.

What are people who only have electric heat supposed to do? This is a genuine question. Other than leave the faucets dripping and make a blanket fort, of course - those are already the plans.

but tree branches are such USEFUL power line support structures! /sarcasm

I'm seeing forecasts of 50+mph wind gusts. That can cause some big problems. The cold sure as hell won't make it any easier.

For infrastructure security reasons, those are not published (I believe). Some utilities used to back in the day. Your best bet is having a friend who works for the power company or used to work for one and can either visually see the circuits or read the pole markings.

In general though, it's fairly easy to know where your local substation is, if you drive around a lot. That's about the only way.

Also, if you're one of the people whose power goes out a lot with even the slightest wind, or if you regularly have low voltage in the summer, you're probably at the end of the circuit.

I have a feeling I’m somewhere in the middle to beginning of the circuit. There’s lots of places in Castle Shannon that lose power at the drop of a hat, but I only seem lose mine when it’s an actual storm or something real.

I appreciate the help tho

Gas heat is the same. You need electricity for the pumps on boilers and air handlers on furnaces.

oh i had no idea! well then, same question applies for that too. Though if you have a gas stove I think you can at least boil water and food and keep yourself warmer that way - though absolutely do NOT try to heat your house with it, that's either going to cause poisoning or explosions or both. But you can use it to fill hot water bottles and keep yourself warmer.

I'm also worried because the heat is pretty much the only thing thats gonna keep pipes from exploding, too.

I know it's mostly forbidden by landlords for renters, but a kerosene heater is essential in this type of situation. I personally use a Mr Heater Big Buddy + propane tank instead. You can vent the air by leaving a window slightly open for draft. It's perfectly safe, as long as you're monitoring the flame and not running out for errands away from home with it burning.

Yes, I think so, the combination of the wind and ice mean lines and tree branches will be heavy and easily snapped in the wind. There’s potential of it to be a truly huge outage for the area.

a little late to get one for this storm though. i talked my mom into buying one a while ago so we could spend time outside for covid reasons, but she took it back with her. i feel better knowing have it at least even if its not meant yo get as bad where they live.

if we lose power here maybe ill ask neighbors on next door or something but ill put it on my list of things to get when i have the money for the future.

do you have any suggestions for past last minute? im googling how to boil water with tealights.... so thats where im at

I don’t think people realize how bad 70 mph winds with snow actually is. I feel like people have been down playing this all week in hopes of it not ruining their holiday travel plans. But I’m expecting a mess. Been preparing for days now.

I have my new generator and my interlock and I'm just dying to use it.

So there wont be a power outage.

Get a generator

are you willing to bring one over and hook it up to my apartment in the next 4 hours? sweet!

Blankets over windows and doors to help keep heat in, towels under doors too

If you have a tent absolutely use it in a power outage situation, putting a few blankets over it will help keep it warmer, and sleeping bags are very warm too

Layers, heat is trapped between layers of clothes

Do not let yourself get/be wet

Staying in one smaller room and not opening the door a lot

Keep flashlights, bottled water, and food handy

Charge everything now; phone, laptop, battery packs, etc

If you have pets keep them with you and keep them warm too, make sure they have access to fresh food and water wherever you cozy up at

Keep your fridge/freezer shut

Be aware of carbon monoxide poisoning

Be safe friend!

Where is there going to be 70mph? That would be bad even without the snow.

As a person in the telephone pole industry, be prepared , could be bad, might be nothing. But. We have a lot against us in a storm like this. Ice and wind are a bad combination, it causes the most damage , and takes the longest time to restore, we can work in rain and snow, but ice makes travel and everything we do more dangerous and difficult, not complaining, but this adds time. NOBODY is getting on a pole or in a bucket truck in a wind storm. We are prepared to handle emergencies and are all "on call" and will start repairs as soon as it's safe. Stay safe and warm, happy holidays from your local fiber splicer

Hopefully not? Though I’ve lived in Pittsburgh my entire life and I don’t remember ever losing power in the winter.

I wish I could relate.. we lost power in the winter up here on Mount Washington a few years back for almost two whole days!

Possibility of winds this high in Pennsylvania. Already have been 55 mph gusts reported this morning.

Thanks for all these tips - I hope they help other people too! So far, I still have power and water (and even internet!) but that could all change quite quickly. Keeping everything plugged in and charged, for sure, and water bottles topped off. I have plastic tarps and stuff that I can tape over the windows more easily than a blanket, if that works as well?

Made me nostalgic for hurricane days in Florida. Similar energy except I still don’t understand why Pennsylvanians don’t just rush out into storm weather with a cheap beer in hand like we did down south.