Electric News Releases - 1999

January 18, 1999

Virginia Power Completes Service Restoration In Northern Virginia

RICHMOND, Va. -- Virginia Power crews completed restoring service Sunday to the last of 215,000 Northern Virginia customers who lost power because of a Friday morning ice storm that brought down trees, utility poles and power lines.

Over the three-day period, more than 1,200 company linemen, contractors and tree trimmers averaged about 72,000 restorations per day.

"Our crews worked tirelessly to restore service in less-than-ideal conditions," said Larry Girvin, senior vice president-Commercial Operations. "Our thanks also go out to customers for their patience and support during the storm and recovery."

This was the second ice storm in less than a month for many of the crews who worked through the weekend in Northern Virginia. On Christmas Eve, freezing rain snapped pine trees like matchsticks and brought down hundreds of utility poles, crossarms and power lines and cut power to about 400,000 customers in a broad swath from Altavista to the Northern Neck.

"Thankfully, the second ice storm did not last as long and was not as devastating to our system as the first," Girvin said. "Fewer poles and lines were knocked down. Saturday's weather also helped. The better weather on the second day allowed our crews to restore service quickly while also working safely."

The compilation of final data on the ice storms will not be completed for several days. The total cost to recover from the Christmas Eve ice storm is expected to exceed the $13 million that Virginia Power spent to recover from Hurricane Fran in 1996.

Virginia Power is the principal subsidiary of Dominion Resources Inc. (NYSE: D), an international energy company based in Richmond.

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