Commonwealth Edison is making it easier for customers to report outages and respond with updates through text messages.
The electric company is providing a free text messaging program that allows participants to text outage reports rather than having to call or report them online. ComEd will then send a series of texts back to acknowledge the report and updates with their progress to restore power.
It could come in handy should power and phone lines go down during bad weather.
To take advantage of the program, customers can subscribe on the ComEd website by providing their account number (or looking it up with a phone number or Social Security number) and selecting "Opt In."
Once registered, customers can text "OUT" to report an outage or "HELP" for more information about an outage to 26633.
The service is provided through third-party company AGENT511, based in Northbrook. The company also handles the City of Chicago's new 311 text messaging program.
