Like many of you, my family was impacted by the loss of power after the storm last week. I received a call that my 88-year-old grandmother’s nursing home had no electricity and no one knew when Pepco would restore it. Like you, we called and checked the website, but found few answers. Five days later, thousands of homes and businesses in Montgomery County are still dark. This is the second major failure of Pepco’s network this year.
Many of you might remember Pepco’s slow response after the ice storm in 1999 and Tropical Storm Isabel in 2003. My neighbors have told me stories about their power going out several times a year after a heavy rain or strong gust of wind. Delegates Al Carr, Ana Sol Gutiérrez, Jeff Waldstreicher and I will get the answers we all deserve.
As chair of our county’s Senate Delegation, I have invited Pepco representatives to testify before the Montgomery County Delegation to explain this pattern of inadequate service and lack of communication with customers. I’ve already asked the Public Service Commission, the agency responsible for regulating utilities, to investigate these frequent outages.
The District 18 Democratic Team is here to help you. If you are still without power and need assistance, please call us at (240) 389-3367 or e-mail me at rich@district18democrats.com.
Thank you,
Rich Madaleno
