MANSFIELD — American Electric Power on Christmas afternoon notified area customers its request to limit electricity usage had ended.
In an email to customers on Christmas Eve, AEP had told customers extremely cold temperatures across the region had created extraordinary demands on the power system.
“PJM Interconnection, the electricity grid operator for 65 million people in 13 states and the District of Columbia, has requested the public in its region to conserve electricity,” the power company said in a 1 p.m. email.
“AEP Ohio, in coordination with PJM, is asking businesses and the public to help by immediately reducing electricity use as much as possible without sacrificing safety. We are asking that customers take these actions until 10 a.m. Sunday, Dec. 25, to help ensure adequate power supplies,” the company said.
On Sunday at 2:25 p.m., AEP ended the request for energy conservation.
“Great news to share with you — the PJM request to reduce use of electricity has ended. Together, our combined efforts helped to make the difference that kept power flowing for you and your neighbors,” AEP President and COO Marc Reitter said in an email to customers.
“With many celebrating the holidays, we know this request in combination with the power outages brought on by Winter Storm Elliott proved to be challenging,” he said.
“On behalf of our team of employees and contractors who worked tirelessly over the past several days to both restore and keep the power on — we thank you. For those who lost power during the storm, we know it wasn’t easy to be without electricity, especially with the extreme cold. Your patience and kindness are very much appreciated,” Reitter said.
AEP has more than five million customers across Ohio.
The winter storm that roared across north central Ohio beginning late Thursday night dropped actual temperatures well below zero. The 40-50 mile per hour winds produced windchills of about -35.
The storm also produced a couple inches of snow that turned into much drifting and blowing due to the winds.
It also produced scattered power outages across the area, according to AEP and FirstEnergy officials.
Temperatures are expected to warm across the region this week, reaching the low 50s by New Year’s Eve.
