ALLENTOWN, Pa. — As Winter Storm Elliott continues to bring cold temperatures and harsh conditions to the Lehigh Valley, PPL says it's working to restore power to those who have lost it, and will provide resources to those that need it at specific locations.
Twelve "warming centers" will be open throughout the day in counties throughout their service territory. The locations will provide heat, power outlets, hot coffee and water for any customer of the utility company who loses power or is in need during the storm.
The centers will be open at least until 7 p.m. today.
PPL said that, if needed, the centers will be open Sunday as well and to see their social media for the latest updates.
Nearby centers are:
Lehigh County
The Four Points by Sheraton
3712 Hamilton Blvd, Allentown
610-437-9100
Northampton County
Surestay by Best Western
300 Gateway Drive, Bethlehem
610-866-5800
Warming center locations also are open in Cumberland County, Dauphin County, Lackawanna County, Lancaster County, Luzerne County, Lycoming County, Monroe County, Schuylkill County and Snyder County.
Outages continue for thousands
PPL said that more than 2,000 utility workers are out supporting restoration efforts.
"We understand how difficult it is and we just want to assure all of our customers that we're doing everything possible to restore power as quickly and safely as possible," said Jane George, PPL regional affairs director. "We have crews working around the clock."
As of Saturday morning, more than 1,000 PPL customers in Lehigh and Berks counties were affected, with hundreds more in other counties currently affected by outages, including 500 in Northampton County.
George said heat loss is greater during extreme cold, and recommended those affected cover their windows, eliminate drafts under doors and around windows with rolled up towels, open blinds to let the sun warm the home in the day and close them at night, and to also ensure any dampers for fireplaces are closed if not being used.
"We also tell our customers it's really important that you have all your electronics charged in case the electricity does go out," George said. "You can pack an emergency kit and have water, food, medications, anything that you might need for your pets.
"If you rely on medical equipment, you need to plan and to make sure that you have everything you need in case you have an extended power outage."
Amanda Lee, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, said today will remain dry but mainly clear for the Lehigh Valley, while still being windy. Gradually temperatures are expected to increase but stay generally within single digits overnight.
A wind chill advisory continues in the Allentown area until 1 p.m. Saturday.
"Limit any outside activity as much as possible," Lee said. "If you're going to venture outside, especially if it's going to be for an extended period of time, make sure to dress appropriately."
For Christmas Day, temperatures are expected to get back up into the mid 20s.
Outage maps provided by PPL and First Energy provide estimated power restoration times to those currently impacted.
View the current PPL outage map here:
First Energy customers can view their outage map here:
