Reporting an Outage

It does not happen often, but when it does you should know the correct procedure for reporting an electric outage.

First: CHECK YOUR ELECTRICAL PANEL

If you should experience a service interruption the first thing to do is to check your fuses or breakers to make sure the problem is not with your own equipment.

Next: CHECK TO SEE IF YOUR NEIGHBORS HAVE SERVICE

This gives us some idea of the extent of the outage when you call in.

Then: CALL COLUMBIA REA

Within Local Area: 509-382-2578
Outside Local Area: 800-642-1231

Please have your account number ready when you call to report trouble. Be prepared to give the name your service is in (the name that appears on your bill). If you have any information about the cause of the outage, such as a tree or limb on the line or broken pole, etc., please give that information as well. This information will assist our service personnel in restoring your service quickly.

Emergency Medical Services

If you utilize medical equipment that is dependent on your electrical service for operation, please let us know. We keep a list of all members who utilize special medical equipment so we can give them priority service in the event of an outage or emergency.

Access For Operation and Maintenance

Periodically, Columbia REA personnel will need to have access to electrical equipment on your property to perform maintenance or make emergency repairs. This equipment must be accessible for this work. Members having such equipment inside fenced or locked areas or within areas housing guard dogs or other such animals must contact our office to provide arrangements for our access. For the safety of our line crews we must be able to drive our service trucks to the job site. This is especially important at irrigation pumps located in the middle of fields.