Duquesne Light says it’s preparing for more outages as high temperatures continue this week

PITTSBURGH — Duquesne Light said it is preparing for more power outages as high temperatures continue this week.

The company also said it will be increasing staffing and adding extra shifts in the field to address the outages.

Click here for the latest outages from Duquesne Light.

In the event of an outage, Duquesne Light provided some steps people can take to stay safe and cool:

Ensure that cell phones and other necessary electronics are fully charged.
Have ice handy to use for cooling packs.
Keep supplies in an emergency preparedness kit, including water bottles, nonperishable food, first-aid supplies, flashlights and a battery-powered radio.
Drink plenty of water.
Avoid opening refrigerator and freezer doors. Food will stay frozen in a fully loaded freezer for 36-48 hours if the door remains closed.

We understand it’s challenging to be without power, especially during a heatwave, and are committed to restoring power as quickly and safely as possible. We're prepared to respond to additional outages caused by this week's extreme heat. More info & tips: https://t.co/A0GTyRYyeE
— Duquesne Light (@DuquesneLight) July 6, 2020

“We heard three loud booms and I saw some smoke outside my window and then power went off,” said Milena Barbosa.

On Monday, a power outage caused by a transformer fire impacted seven Pittsburgh neighborhoods.

“I hope it doesn’t happen again and I think it is not supposed to cool down until the weekend, you know. So I hope they have everything under control but I got to say, they did a good job yesterday, quickly at least for us, they fixed the problem quite quickly,” Barbosa said.

The power outage, which spanned about 30 blocks, affected Highland Park, Morningside, Garfield, East Liberty, Stanton Heights, Lawrenceville and Bloomfield, according to a tweet from Allegheny County.

Pittsburgh: Power outage/transformer fire with high tension lines down; power outage affecting Highland Park, Morningside, Garfield, East Liberty, Stanton Heights, Lawrenceville & Bloomfield areas.. Spanning approx 30 blocks. Unknown time of restoration.
— Allegheny County (@Allegheny_Co) July 6, 2020