Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Xcel Energy officials have scheduled a power outage for Saturday in downtown Clovis.
The planned outage will impact 21 customers "and it shouldn't take any more than one to two hours," said Xcel spokesman Wes Reeves.
Reeves said he did not have an exact time for the outage to begin, but "it's either 7 or 8 a.m." He said all customers impacted have already been notified.
He said the outage will allow a crew to work on "a voltage conversion between Main Street and Mitchell."
Clovis City Commissioner Gail Tarson said she received a call from Xcel about the plans, but was told the outage would be from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday. Her business, Diamonds Evermore, is among Xcel customers expected to be affected.
Reeves said Xcel officials sometimes "estimate a longer period of time than what is actually expected" prior to planned outages. "This allows for extra time if something comes up they had not planned for."
Tarson wrote on her Facebook page that she is "not sure why they would 'plan' an outage during the middle of summer heat, during the day, rather than plan it at a time less impactful on their customers (like 2 a.m. to 8 a.m.) ... NOT COOL XCEL ENERGY!"
Reeves said Xcel understands the work is an inconvenience for the impacted customers. "This type of work will increase the reliability of the local grid and help prevent outages in the future. Scheduling this type of work in the early-morning light is much safer for our workers. If everything goes as planned, they will likely be finished before the heat comes on too strong."
