PIERRE — The City of Pierre is cautioning residents to be ready to save energy or risk temporary black outs in the peak of the summer. City Utility Director Brad Palmer says the city’s power suppliers have warned of possible brown outs due to expected demand….
Palmer says if the nation’s electric grid ends up at risk for maxing, suppliers will ask customers to “shed” load…
Palmer says it’s similar to the Great Texas Freeze-out of 2021 where arctic air streamed south into Texas and Oklahoma forcing residents of normally mild winter states to turn to electric for heat and nearly collapsing the electric grid. He says the will likely get two to three days’ notice that a possible shut-down is needed…
Palmer says critical access facilities like nursing homes and Avera St. Mary’s hospital will not be targeted for a power cut if the need arises. More information will be included with July utility bills. Notification of any required outages will be made through text alerting services like AlertSense; through the city’s social media accounts and with local media outlets.
