BALTIMORE (Sept. 5, 2019) – National Preparedness Month kicks-off as the first major hurricane of the season impacted the U.S. this week and peak Atlantic hurricane season is quickly approaching. BGE reminds customers to be prepared for severe weather and other emergencies. ​

“BGE’s employees prepare to respond to severe weather year-round and Hurricane Dorian is a timely reminder of the importance of having a plan for extreme events,” said Stephen J. Woerner, BGE president and chief operating officer. “I urge all of our customers to think ahead and ensure that they are able to take care of themselves and their loved ones if we are faced with a major storm in Maryland.”

To help customers plan and prepare for an emergency, BGE offers the following tips:

• Keep a flashlight with fresh batteries on each floor of your home.
• Identify an alternate location for you and/or your family in case of an extended outage.
• Customers who rely on electricity to keep medicine refrigerated or medical equipment running should develop a plan to maintain health requirements during a power outage.
• If you own a generator, review the manufacturer’s instructions for its safe operation. Do not connect a generator directly to your home’s wiring. Never use a generator indoors or in any enclosed area.
• Follow the advice of local emergency management officials.
• Stay away from any storm damaged BGE equipment, especially downed lines. Report a downed wire immediately by calling 800-685-0123​.

If severe storms hit, BGE has many online resources for customers. To report an outage, customers can visit www.bge.com, utilize BGE’s Mobile App, send a text message to MyBGE (69243)*, or call customer service at 1.877.778.2222. The company’s interactive outage map also provide customers information about outages and can provide an estimate of when power is expected to be restored.

In addition, BGE will attempt to contact eligible Special Needs customers (typically customers who have a serious illness or are on life support) to notify them of the possibility of an impending severe storm so that back-up plans can be implemented. Customers should call 800.685.0123 or visit BGE.com for more information about this service.

BGE will conduct its annual day-long emergency response and severe impact storm response drill in early September. This drill enables BGE to test the company’s readiness to respond to major storm events and update its emergency procedures. BGE also works closely with its sister Exelon companies (Atlantic City Electric, ComEd, Delmarva Power, PECO and Pepco) to ensure seamless support during storm or emergency restoration efforts.

National Preparedness Month is sponsored by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to encourage Americans to prepare for emergencies in all facets of their lives. 

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BGE, founded in 1816 as the nation's first gas utility and headquartered in Baltimore, is Maryland's largest natural gas and electric utility. The company's approximately 3,200 employees are committed to safe and reliable energy delivery to more than 1.25 million electric customers and more than 650,000 natural gas customers in central Maryland.  In the J.D. Power 2017 and 2018 Electric Utility Business Customer Satisfaction Study^SM BGE was ranked Highest in Customer Satisfaction with Business Electric Service in the East among Large Utilities. In addition, in the J.D. Power 2018 Gas Utility Business Customer Satisfaction Study^SM  BGE received Best in Customer Satisfaction with Business Natural Gas Service in the East. BGE is a subsidiary of Exelon Corporation (NYSE: EXC), the nation's leading competitive energy provider. Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter, YouTube  and Flickr.

Baltimore Gas and Electric Company (or "BGE") received the highest score in the East Large segment of the 2018 Electric Utility Business Customer Satisfaction Study and the East Region of the 2018 Gas Utility Business Customer Satisfaction Study of electric and gas utility customer satisfaction among business customers. Visit jdpower.com/awards.