Emera Maine, formerly known as Bangor Hydro, is reporting a large outage in Washington County this morning, affecting roughly 5,000 customers. Crews are in the area, trying to determine the cause and get the power turned back on.

Frigid temperatures today make staying in an unheated home extremely dangerous. If your power is out and you have no alternate means of heat, you're encouraged to get to a warm location until the problem is fixed.

Here's the information sent out today in a press release:

Restoration Details:Emera Maine crews have been dispatched to determine the cause of an outage which has knocked power out to more than 5,000 customers this morning in Washington County. Areas affected include Machias, East Machias, Whiting, Cutler, Lubec and surrounding communities. Line workers are on en route and will work to get everyone restored as quickly and safely as possible.

As always customers are reminded to never touch a downed power line or a tree near one, and those with generators are asked to make sure that generators are properly installed according to manufacturer guidelines. The same is true of any alternate heat source. Make sure heaters are well ventilated and never left unattended.
Other Related Information:The Customer Service Center is staffed and customers are welcome to call to report outages or ask questions by calling (207) 973-2000 or 1-855-EMERA11 (363-7211).
Estimated Time of Service Restoration:9:30 p.m.; frigid temperatures and difficult travel conditions may delay restoration times.

More From WQCB Brewer Maine