Bob Pierce answers questions about energy efficiency, consumer products, and cooperative governance. He is Clearwater Power’s Chief Operating Officer and welcomes your questions on our Ask Bob page.
When I call Clearwater Power to report an outage at night or on the weekends, why do I get someone from out of state to talk to, or sometimes get a recorded message?
Clearwater Power uses Security and Response Services for after-hours phone and dispatch services. SRS is a subsidiary of another cooperative, Basin Electric Power, in Bismarck, North Dakota.
We have found the use of another cooperative service to complement our member services team based in our Lewiston office. It is the most economical, practical, and dependable way for our members to report after-hours outages and emergencies.
SRS has a call center capable of handling a higher volume of calls, ensuring that during a major outage, members won’t receive a busy signal. When a large outage occurs, members whose phone numbers match the records of accounts involved in the outage hear a recorded message with the latest outage update.
There is also an option to stay on the line for the next available dispatcher if there’s a need to speak with a person instead.
In addition to answering calls from members, SRS dispatches Clearwater Power Line crews after hours. When dispatchers track and check in with crew members 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, crew safety while responding to outages increases, and they receive updates to share with members.
When calling to report an outage during or after hours, it is helpful to have your account number, service address, and phone number ready to speed up the process.
If you ever have a concern about the after-hours service you receive from SRS, let us know so we can follow up.