Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) is prepared for a brief period of high winds and heavy rainfall, with the potential for limited disruption to its central southern England electricity distribution network.

Current forecasts show strong gusts of wind, reaching up to 45 mph across the coast, over the course of the next 24 hours, accompanied by heavy showers throughout the weekend and into Monday morning.

In response, SSEN has enacted it's well established resilience plans and is prepared to act promptly to address network damage, where it is safe to do so.In the event that teams may be required to repair damage caused by this adverse weather, SSEN's engineers will be working in accordance with Government coronavirus guidance, adhering to strict social distancing measures to ensure the safety of the local community as they work. Additional resource has been placed on standby and SSEN's customer contact centre will continue to monitor the weather front as it develops.

While the potential for disruptions to power supplies during this weather event is low, customers can prepare by:

  • Saving the new Freephone emergency power cut number - 105 - to your phone to use if your power goes off, or if you see any damage to the electricity network.
  • Downloading our Power Track app to give you details of power cuts and restoration times and to report faults or damage to SSEN's network.
  • Going to our website for advice and information on how to prepare for a possible loss of power.
  • Following SSEN on Facebook and Twitter for regular updates.

In addition, SSEN's customer service teams are making outbound calls to customers on our Priority Services Register (PSR)to offer extra assistance, where required.

SSEN has extended its Priority Services Register (PSR) to those who arecategorised at 'high risk' and 'extremely high risk' of severe illness from coronavirus, so they arenow eligible to sign up for additional support through the free, tailored service. This includes those following government guidelines who have received a letter from the NHS to socially shield for a 12-week period.

Customers are also eligible for SSEN's Priority Services Register if they:

  • Are deaf or hard of hearing
  • Have a disability
  • Live with children under five
  • Are blind or partially sighted
  • Have a chronic illness
  • Use medical equipment/aid reliant on electricity
  • Are over 60
  • Would benefit from PSR services for any other reason, even if temporarily

SSEN produces its Priority Services Register leaflets in 11 different languages; all of which are also available to read and download from its website, by going to: www.ssen.co.uk/psr. The website will also translate every page to over 100 languages, and read 33 of them aloud; simply by clicking on the Accessibility 'triple A' button in the top right hand corner.

To find out more, please go to the Priority Services Register page on our website: www.ssen.co.uk/psr, where SSEN's multi-language PSR leaflets can also be accessed and downloaded.