South Jersey Utility Crews Gearing Up For Hermine

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (CBS) - There is a potential threat of heavy rain and strong winds down the shore this Labor Day weekend thanks to Hermine.

Electric companies are preparing to work around the clock to restore any service interruptions.

Atlantic City Electric is monitoring the weather and prepared to dispatch crews should power be knocked out due to the storm.

Frank Tedesco is a spokesman for ACE and says if the 125 internal personnel need help, there are other resources available:

"We have crews available from our sister utilities Delmarva Power and Pepco as well as overhead line contractors already working on our system should we need extra assistance. Through the merger with Exelon we now have other resources from utilities associated under the Exelon family, including Baltimore Gas & Electric and PECO in Philadelphia."

Tedesco says if you encounter a down wire assume it is energized, stay away and report it.

In fact, he encourages customers to contact the utility simply if power is lost:

"We don't want customers to assume their neighbor did it. You know the way the system works in New Jersey is, we don't have smart meters, so we don't know that you are out of service. We have an idea of what areas are out of service because of phone calls we get, but we always encourage folks to call regardless if they think their neighbor has or hasn't."

He also reminds the public about emergency kits which should include flashlights, a battery powered radio, nonperishable food and bottled water.