Related News
Related News
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Spring Cleaning? How about Spring Emergency Preparedness!
Spring is officially here and that means the plants are blooming, the sun is (sometimes) shining, and the grass is green! We've had our fair share of severe weather already, but spring weather is notoriously unpredictable. While you're in the midst of spring cleaning and garden care, consider completing these emergency preparedness tasks.
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EWEB General Manager Delivers 2024 State of the Utility
General Manager Frank Lawson delivered his address at the March 5 public Board of Commissioners meeting
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Nine days without power: My ice storm story as an EWEB customer and employee
While beautiful and peaceful, buying a home on the edge of the forest and surrounded by trees has its tradeoffs. Moving “upriver,” I knew there would be more threats to prepare for, including Mother Nature’s seasonal surprises.
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EWEB achieves power restoration milestone over the weekend
Crews have so far restored power for 92% of customers who originally lost power at the height of the ice storm.
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Reenergized McKenzie River Valley transmission lines allow EWEB crews to restore power upriver
On Friday, a majority of EWEB crews tackled power restoration efforts upriver, after federally managed transmission lines were reenergized Thursday.
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EWEB estimates one week to complete power system restoration
On Wednesday, EWEB crews restored power for about 10,000 customers by repairing large equipment first.
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Second round of ice and ensuing thaw prompt mass power outages
On Wednesday, all EWEB crews, who have been working nonstop since Saturday, traversed EWEB’s service territory assessing the damage and restoring transmission lines and main power feeders.
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Power restored at EWEB’s water treatment plant
Crews restored electric power at EWEB's Hayden Bridge Water Filtration Plant Monday evening, allowing operators to switch off the generators and rely again on the grid. Meanwhile, EWEB crews brace for additional outages amidst second round of ice and during the coming thaw.
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EWEB crews focusing on restoring electric service for Hayden Bridge Water Filtration Plant
With more ice forecasted for Tuesday, all EWEB crews are in the field assessing outages and restoring power.
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EWEB crews making downed lines safe and restoring power across Eugene and the foothills
As EWEB works to restore electric service to customers affected by the ice storm, the customer-owned utility is following established policies and its “hierarchy of repair” to prioritize repairs that restore electric service to the greatest number of customers.
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Leaburg Decommissioning Action Plan
Plan details next steps through regulatory processes to begin dismantling Leaburg Dam by 2032.
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What’s ahead in 2024: General manager’s message to EWEB customer-owners
At the start of the new year, we back at accomplishments from 2023 and look ahead at what's to come in 2024.
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Start the New Year saving money with energy saving tips
We know that saving money is important to our customers. Using energy and water wisely is a great way to reduce your monthly utility bill, even as the costs of electricity and water rise. EWEB has several steps you can take to reduce your usage and even make your home feel more comfortable.
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Currin Substation: End of year update
EWEB Engineer Philip Peterson explains what's been happening in the final stretch to complete the substation rebuild.
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EWEB 2023 year in review
In 2023, EWEB invested in our community with grants, rebates and an array of other programs and measures aimed at fulfilling our core values of safety, reliability, affordability, environmental responsibility and community/culture.
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Another Record Month for EWEB’s Bill Assistance Program
May 07, 2020
EWEB's Customer Care bill assistance program re-opened on Friday, May 1 at 9 a.m. By 9:04, 205 online applications were complete, and by 9:20, nearly 600 customers had applied online.
One year ago, this stunning rate of applications for assistance would have been unthinkable. For one thing, no one would have anticipated that a global pandemic would put thousands of EWEB customers out of work within a six week period. Since mid-March, more than 300,000 Oregonians have filed unemployment claims, according to the Oregon Employment Department.
Another reason—the operations behind the Customer Care program could not have handled that volume and pace of call-in applications one year ago.
In January of this year, EWEB made a major overhaul of the assistance program, bringing the intake process in house, creating a self-service web application that allows customers to upload their proof of eligibility, and automatically qualifying LIHEAP recipients.
"We've not only made it easier and faster for customers to apply for assistance, but we've also reduced administrative costs by around $350,000 over the past two years," said Anna Wade of Customer Solutions. "As a result, more funds are going directly to those in need, and less to administration."
In the first quarter of 2020, EWEB delivered $539,000 in bill assistance. Of that, $452,000 came through the rate-funded Customer Care program, and $87,000 resulted from customer donations to the Energy Share program.
Within 20 minutes of opening, the web app for Customer Care bill assistance had processed nearly 600 applications.
Utilizing the self-service web app is key to a speedy application process, says Anna.
"We really encourage customers to use the online application because it can accept hundreds of applications simultaneously, compared to Customer Service Agents who can only help one person at a time over the phone."
Just a few minutes into the program opening on May 1, EWEB's phone queue was at maximum capacity, with 140 customers waiting to speak to a Customer Service Agent (CSA). Some customers waited more than 30 minutes.
"The first business day of the month is go-time for CSAs who sign people up for bill assistance, and the coronavirus has amplified the financial problems in our community, even for people who have traditionally been rock solid," said Customer Service Lead Mark Duvall. "With so many customers in need and limited resources to go around, it creates a lot of stress on our phone system, but we are all doing our part to assist as many as possible in these difficult times."
By the time all applications are processed, EWEB will have distributed over $225,000 in the month of May, assisting more than 865 customers. Another $200,000 in assistance funding will be available in June, and by year-end, nearly 7,000 households could receive the EWEB bill credit.