UPDATE at 2:40 p.m.:
The Associated Press reports the Tennessee Valley Authority is requesting their customers to reduce the amount of power they use. These measures are to help combat the freezing temperatures the area is facing.
TVA said in a statement it expects the demand to be at its highest on Thursday evening and again on Friday morning.
The company is encouraging the use of generators to replace the power. Murray State has generators in place in case of a power shutdown. The generators were tested Wednesday morning and are in working condition.
Murray State is one of 25 universities serviced by TVA.
Some classes have been cancelled at the instructors’ discretion, but the University remains open and on schedule until further notice.
Interim President Tim Miller said administration at the University recently found the contract with TVA. The contract, titled 5MR for five-minute response, asks Murray State to shut off a certain amount of power on campus or the University will face a fine of up to $500,000.
Miller said he while he was in Frankfort this week, he talked to a TVA lobbyist about the safety concern presented during a power outage.
“We’ve made numerous calls and we’ve raised a stink,” Miller said. “They know we’ve had damage from the previous shut downs. I really don’t think they’ll shut us down, but we’ll see. But we are under contract and they can do it at any time.”
Miller said he isn’t sure how the contract was initially approved, but he does know it wasn’t looked at by the Board of Regents.
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With single-digit temperatures predicted for the rest of the week, Murray State is preparing for the possibility of another power outage throughout campus.
The Tennessee Valley Authority alerted the University of a “medium risk of power curtailment.” Murray State has an interruptible service contract with TVA to save money on utility costs, according to Facilities Management.
Scott Brooks, TVA public relations representative, said there are no specific plans at this time to shut off power at the University. Brooks said TVA does not turn the power off, but notifies the University of how much power needs to be reduced.
It is up to the University to decide when, where and how the electricity will be saved throughout campus.
Catherine Sivills, assistant vice president for communications, said there is no way of knowing when TVA will require the University to cut off power.
“Students will be alerted through a campus-wide email immediately after Murray State receives the notification from TVA,” Sivills said. “In the event of a power outage, students who live on campus will still have power.”
Winslow Dining Hall and the residential colleges would have power, Sivills said. She said the generator powering the residential colleges and Winslow were tested this morning and are in working condition.
If power is cut off, Sivills said it would more than likely be to the academic side of campus.
Electricity was shut off throughout parts of campus on Jan. 7-8 and saved TVA 1,000 megawatts of power.
During the power outage, damage was reported in approximately 40 percent of campus buildings, according to Facilities Management.
These damages were a result of freezing pipes in some of the older buildings on campus.
Jim Packatt, lead forecaster at the National Weather Service in Paducah, Ky., said the weather is not expected to get as cold as Jan. 7-8.
Packatt said temperatures are expected to drop to as low as 8 degrees tonight, and as 4 degrees tomorrow night.
“We are stuck in this weather pattern and will have systems similar to this roll in every two days,” Packatt said.
He said the weather conditions will continue to be stuck in this pattern until the end of the month, and then temperatures are expected to reach significantly higher digits.
Story by Rebecca Walter, staff writer.
