Relighting process has begun

The following information has been released from the City of Newport;

RELIGHTING PROCESS HAS BEGUN

National Grid has informed the City that crews have been authorized to begin the re-light process, which will restore natural gas service to homes affected by the ongoing gas outage.

Residents are urged not to attempt to turn their meters or gas appliances on by themselves. Attempting to do so is extremely dangerous and may hinder the restoration process. National Grid and their mutual-aid technicians must handle all meter turn-ons and appliance re-lights. National Grid will contact impacted customers with an automated call to inform them the re-lights have begun in their neighborhoods. . In order to help facilitate the process, all affected customers are encouraged to update their account information with the most up to date contact information, either by logging into your National Grid account, or calling 1-800-870-1664.

Currently, a force of more than 600 service technicians will blanket all 19 impacted zones at once, however please note that this process is expected to last throughout the day and overnight. National Grid is encouraging customers to be available at their homes and businesses today and tomorrow to help expedite their restoration. . Residents in their homes overnight are also asked to leave their porch light on if they’re open to allowing National Grid access to the premises overnight.

Additionally, please be aware that National Grid crews must wear identifying tags and will generally not ask for customer account information.

If you detect the smell gas, please dial 9-1-1. Thank you for your patience during these past days, and we will continue to provide updates over the course of the outage over our social media channels and the City’s website.