Recent Press Release

Alliant Energy advises caution around flooded homes & businesses

Guidelines Offered to Ensure Safety

Cedar Rapids, Iowa – March 26, 2008 – As the temperatures rise and all the snow Mother Nature brought this winter continues to melt, Spring flooding has become a concern in some areas. Walking through a wet or flooded home or building can be dangerous. Alliant Energy advises people to use extreme caution in this situation and offers the following guidelines to ensure safety.

• Never walk through a flooded home or building until the electricity is disconnected. Even a small amount of water on the floor of your basement can put you at risk for electrocution.
• Call Alliant Energy to have service disconnected at the meter. If there is standing water in your home or business, call Alliant Energy at 1-800-ALLIANT (255-4268) to have power disconnected before you step into any standing water. Once the power is disconnected, it’s safe to begin clean up.
• Call Alliant Energy to have your natural gas turned off. Standing water can snuff out pilot lights on hot water heaters and furnaces. If this occurs, natural gas may collect in your home, creating the risk of an explosion. Call Alliant Energy at 1-800-ALLIANT (255-4268) to have your home’s natural gas service turned off.
• Have a licensed electrician inspect your electrical system before calling to be reconnected.
• Have your furnace and water heater inspected by a heating or appliance and service repair contractor before calling to be reconnected. Gas appliance manufacturers recommend appliance parts that have been under water be replaced.

Alliant Energy does not charge for flood-related disconnects and reconnects. Shutting off your gas and electric service during times of flooding is done for safety purposes. Alliant Energy will not charge you to have your service turned off when flooding occurs, or turned back on after the clean-up is done.

For more information, call Alliant Energy’s 24-hour Customer Service Center at 1-800-255-4628. You can also check out the Storm and Outage Center in the Utility Services section of our website at Storm & Outage Center.

Media Contact: Ryan Stensland (319) 786-4171