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Atmospheric river event

We are gearing up for another stormy night. Heavy rain and strong winds started this afternoon and are forecasted into the morning on Wednesday. We expect to see widespread power outages due to the combination of rain, wind, and saturated and unstable soil.

We understand how hard it is to be without power and that you are depending on us. Forecasts also indicate temperatures will drop starting tomorrow. We encourage our customers to take steps now to be without power.

Today, crews made steady progress restoring power from the previous two storms. We have staged crews and brought in additional crews from outside the area to support restoration efforts. Access to some areas has been an issue and is a concern tomorrow if there are road closures and continued flooding. We are also worried about saturated and unstable ground that prevents crews from working safely.

Visit PSE’s Alerts and Advisories page for information on our response efforts: pse.com/alerts.


   
alert 

Safety first. Never touch or go within 35 feet of downed power lines because they might be energized. Call PSE at 1-888-225-5773 or 911 to report problems.

Report and track power outages online

Maxwelton Substation/Langley Tap electric projects

Project overview

To increase reliability for our customers on south Whidbey Island, PSE completed construction on a new 25 megavolt amperes (MVA) substation in 2016 between SR 525, Craw Road and Ariel Way.

To complement the new substation, this project included other system improvements that were all completed by 2020:

Craw Road undergrounding

To avoid running overhead power lines across a state highway, PSE converted a short section of existing overhead distribution line to underground along Maxwelton Road, beginning at the Craw Road intersection, continuing underneath SR 525 and ending at Whidbey Island High School.

Langley 15/16 feeder extension

PSE upgraded the Langley 15/16 feeder extension, an existing single-phase low-voltage line, to a higher capacity. This upgrade provides additional capacity that allows the new substation to back up electric load normally served by Langley Substation, greatly improving electric service reliability in Langley.

Langley Tap pole replacement

To further strengthen our system, PSE replaced the aging wooden poles of the Langley Tap, an existing transmission line currently running from the Langley Substation to the new Maxwelton Substation.

Maxwell Town Substation

Photo of the completed Maxwelton Substation

S Whidbey Projects Map

Project map (PDF download)