Company to trim trees along 3,100 miles of
power lines in Maryland and
West Virginia
WILLIAMSPORT, Md., May 3, 2022
/PRNewswire/ -- Potomac Edison, a subsidiary of FirstEnergy Corp.
(NYSE: FE), has kicked off its 2022 tree-trimming program with
plans to clear vegetation along approximately 3,100 miles of power
lines in Maryland and the Eastern
Panhandle of West Virginia to help
enhance electric service reliability for customers.
Maintaining proper clearances and removing dead or diseased
trees around electrical equipment can help reduce the frequency and
duration of power outages, especially those associated with severe
weather. In 2021, the amount of time Potomac Edison customers
experienced service interruptions due to trees dropped by 20%
compared to 2019. Clearing incompatible vegetation under power
lines also gives company personnel easier access to inspect and
maintain lines and make repairs quicker if an outage occurs.
"Vegetation management is crucial to our service reliability
efforts and one of the most effective ways we can reduce the impact
of tree-related outages for customers," said Linda Moss, president of FirstEnergy's
Maryland operations.
As part of Potomac Edison's $33
million program, trees are inspected and pruned in a manner
that helps preserve the health of the tree while maintaining safe
clearances near electrical equipment. In some cases, trees that
present a danger or are diseased may be removed. Similar work will
be performed along 242 miles of the company's high-voltage
transmission power lines in Maryland, West
Virginia and Virginia as
part of a $4.6 million
program.
Potomac Edison will be conducting tree-trimming work in the
following counties and communities this year:
Maryland
- Allegany: Barton,
Corriganville, Cresaptown, Cumberland, Ellerslie, Flintstone, LaVale, Midland, Lonaconing, Oldtown, Westernport
- Carroll: Mount
Airy, Union Bridge, Taneytown
- Frederick: Emmitsburg, Frederick, Middletown, Monrovia, Mount
Airy, Myersville,
New Market, Sabillasville, Thurmont, Urbana, Walkersville, Woodsboro
- Garrett: Bittinger, Bloomington, Friendsville, Gorman, Grantsville, Hancock, Jennings, Kitzmiller, McHenry, Oakland, Redhouse
- Montgomery: Damascus
- Washington: Beaver
Creek, Big Pool, Big Spring, Boonsboro, Cascade, Fort
Ritchie, Foxville,
Hagerstown, Huyett, Leitersburg, Mount Lena, Pinesburg, Sharpsburg, Smithsburg, Williamsport, Wilson
West Virginia
- Berkeley: Bunker
Hill, Falling Waters, Glengary, Hedgesville, Inwood, Martinsburg
- Grant: Maysville
- Hampshire: Augusta, Capon Bridge, Green
Spring, High View,
Purgittsville, Yellow Spring
- Hardy: Baker, Perry, Wardensville
- Jefferson: Charles Town, Harpers Ferry, Kearneysville, Millville, Ranson, Shenandoah
Junction, Shepherdstown
- Mineral: Fort
Ashby, Keyser, Piedmont, Short
Gap
- Morgan: Berkeley Springs
The vegetation management work is conducted by certified tree
experts under the company's direction, including Asplundh Tree
Expert Company, Lewis Tree, N.G.
Gilbert, Nelson Tree Service, Wright
Tree Service and Xylem Tree Experts.
Potomac Edison works with municipalities to inform them of
tree-trimming schedules. Additionally, customers living in areas
along company rights-of-way are notified prior to vegetation
management work being done.
Potomac Edison serves about 275,000 customers in all or parts of
Allegany, Carroll, Frederick, Garrett, Howard, Montgomery, and Washington counties in Maryland and 151,000 customers in the Eastern
Panhandle of West Virginia. Follow
Potomac Edison at www.potomacedison.com, on Twitter @PotomacEdison,
and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/PotomacEdison.
FirstEnergy is dedicated to integrity, safety, reliability and
operational excellence. Its 10 electric distribution companies form
one of the nation's largest investor-owned electric systems,
serving customers in Ohio,
Pennsylvania, New Jersey, West
Virginia, Maryland and
New York. The company's
transmission subsidiaries operate approximately 24,000 miles of
transmission lines that connect the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic
regions. Follow FirstEnergy online at www.firstenergycorp.com and
on Twitter @FirstEnergyCorp.
Editor's Note: Photos of utility personnel trimming
trees near FirstEnergy power lines are available for download
on Flickr. A video explaining FirstEnergy's vegetation
management techniques can also be found on YouTube.
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SOURCE FirstEnergy Corp.