• Have battery-operated flashlights and radios with fresh batteries ready. Listen for updates on storm conditions and power outages.
• If your telephone system that requires electricity to work, such as a cordless phone or answering machine, plan for alternate communication – have a standard telephone handset, cellular telephone or pager ready as a backup.
• Candles pose a fire risk, and you should avoid using them. If you must use candles, keep them away from drapes, lampshades and small children. Do not leave candles unattended.
• Freeze plastic containers filled with water to make blocks of ice that can be placed in your refrigerator/freezer during an outage to prevent foods from spoiling. Blue Ice from your picnic cooler also works well in the freezer.

• If you have a stand-by generator, make sure that it’s installed safely and inform PG&E to avoid risking damage to your property and endangering PG&E workers. Information on the safe installation of generators can be found on our website at <www.pge.com/generator>.

• If your power goes out, unplug or turn off all electric appliances to avoid overloading circuits and fire hazards when power is restored. Simply leave a single lamp on to alert you when power returns. Turn your appliances back on one at a time when conditions return to normal.
• Treat all downed power lines as if they are “live” or energized.  Keep yourself and others away from them and immediately call 911 then notify PG&E at 1-800-743-5000.

• Check to see if other neighbors are affected. This would confirm if an outage has occurred in just your residence or within the neighborhood area.
• If only your residence is without power, check circuit breakers and/or fuse boxes to see if the problem is limited to the home electric system.
• After performing the steps above, report your outage to: PG&E's 24-Hour Emergency and Customer Service Line 1-800-743-5000.

National technology group thanks Members for their opposition to SOPA and PIPA

WASHINGTON, D.C. - NetCoalition, a group of leading Internet and technology companies, today launched a print advertising campaign in California thanking Reps. Darrell Issa (R-CA) and Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) for their continued opposition to the the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the PROTECT IP Act (PIPA). Both bills will have negative, unintended consequences on the jobs created by the growing Internet sector.

"On behalf of NetCoalition, I would like to thank Representatives Darrell Issa and Zoe Lofgren for their steadfast opposition to regulating the Internet,"said Markham Erickson, Executive Director of NetCoalition. "The Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the PROTECT IP Act (PIPA) would not only stifle free speech and innovation, but would also chill the investments that California's groundbreaking technology companies depend upon to survive. By standing up and fighting for a free and open Internet, Reps. Issa and Lofgren are protecting thousands of California jobs."

For additional information, please visit www.netcoalition.com.