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Find the electric delivery utility for your address, open its official outage map, and report the outage through the utility’s listed website, app, text service, or phone line. If a wire is down or anyone is in immediate danger, stay away and call 9-1-1 before handling the outage as a routine service issue.
How do I find my local power outage map?
The correct map belongs to the electric utility that owns or operates the wires serving your address. Start with that utility, not a generic outage website and not necessarily the company shown as your electricity supplier.
- Check a recent electric bill. Look for the utility or delivery company name, its website, and its outage-reporting telephone number. The company that bills you for electricity may be a retail supplier, while a different utility maintains the local lines.
- Use your state utility regulator if you cannot find a bill. Search the regulator’s official site for “electric utility directory,” “outage map,” or “service territory.” For example, the California Public Utilities Commission’s Power Outage Maps page links to investor-owned utility maps and tells customers to report outages on their utility’s own website. The Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission’s Utility Outages directory links to outage maps or reporting channels for five large investor-owned utilities.
- Confirm the service area. Municipal utilities and electric cooperatives often operate separate systems and websites. If your state regulator does not list your provider, check your city, cooperative, or the utility name on your bill.
- Open the utility’s official domain. Use the navigation or site search for “Outage Map,” “Outages,” “Report Outage,” “Storm Center,” or “Outage Status.” Check the web address before entering your home address, account details, or telephone number.
A state directory is useful for identifying the provider, but the local utility’s map and reporting system are the authoritative tools for an address-level outage.
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Electricity markets can separate the company that sells electricity from the company that delivers it. A retail supplier may appear on your bill or in your account, while a transmission and distribution utility owns or operates the wires, meters, and restoration work. Oncor, for instance, describes itself as an electric transmission and distribution utility and explains that residents receive energy through retail providers they choose. Its Outages & Weather page illustrates why a delivery utility—not just a retail supplier—is the right place to look for a line outage.
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In a regulated or vertically integrated service area, the same company may sell electricity and deliver it. The practical test is the utility name attached to the outage map, emergency number, or “report an outage” instructions on your bill. If in doubt, use the regulator’s directory, then verify the address in the utility’s map.
How do I use the official outage map?
Search by service address
Most utility maps provide an address field. Enter the street address, city, ZIP code, or other information requested by the utility. Some systems require an account login for a report but allow a public map search without one. Read the result for the incident location, number of affected customers, status, last-updated time, and any estimated restoration information.
Use city, county, or map browsing when address search fails
Address matching is not universal. The Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) Report Electric Issue page documents three ways to find an event: enter an address, search by city or county, or browse the interactive map. A city or county search can reveal a nearby incident when a street address is not recognized; map browsing can show whether your neighborhood is inside a larger outage area.
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Read the map’s status details, not only the colored shape
- Last updated: This tells you how current the displayed feed is.
- Report or identification time: It may indicate when the utility learned of the event, which can be later than when your power went off.
- Estimated restoration: Treat this as an estimate, not a guarantee. Damage assessment, weather, permits, crew access, and additional failures can change it.
- Restoration status: “Crew assigned,” “assessing,” “repairs in progress,” and “restored” describe different stages. If your service remains off after a restoration notice, report it again through the utility.
Is there a power outage in my area if the map shows nothing?
Possibly. A map is an information feed, not proof that the utility has detected every interruption. A small service drop, a recently failed transformer, a communications delay, or an address that has not yet been associated with the event can leave the map blank. Report the outage through the utility’s own channel even when no marker appears.
Refresh delays also vary by system and conditions:
| Source or tool | Stated update behavior | How to interpret it |
|---|---|---|
| PG&E outage map | Updates every five minutes; during widespread outages, updates can take up to 30 minutes. | This is PG&E’s published cadence for its map, not a guarantee for other utilities. |
| Oncor outage map | Outage information is sent to the map every 10 minutes; heavy site traffic can delay refreshes. | The interval describes the data feed, while traffic can make the visible page older. |
| California Office of Emergency Services aggregated layer | Automatically updated every 15 minutes from utility public maps. | It is a statewide context layer, not a replacement for the local utility’s address-level system. |
The PG&E and Oncor intervals are examples from those utilities, and the California interval applies to that state’s aggregation. Do not combine them into a nationwide refresh standard. Check the local page’s timestamp, then submit a report if your service is out.
How do I report an outage if it is not on the map?
- Open the utility’s reporting page or app. Select “Report an outage,” “Report electric issue,” or the equivalent option. On PG&E’s page, a customer can enter an address or select the report option; when the utility is not yet aware of an outage, the reporting option appears.
- Provide the requested location and contact information. Give the service address, a callback number, and any account or meter information requested. Describe whether the entire property is without power or only part of it.
- Use another official channel if the online form fails. Utilities may publish a telephone line, app, text service, or automated reporting system. Options and telephone numbers differ by service territory, so use the contact information on your bill or the utility’s official website.
- Save the confirmation. Record a confirmation number, text message, or screenshot if the system provides one. It helps you check status without submitting duplicate reports.
- Check status again after reporting. Reopen the utility’s status tool or subscribe to its alerts where available. If the outage continues but the report disappears or the map says service is restored, submit a fresh report.
Oncor lists online reporting, telephone reporting, and text alerts for customers enrolled in its alert program. PG&E provides online reporting and separate customer and outage contact routes. These are utility-specific examples; another provider may offer a different combination.
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What should I do if a power line is down?
Handle a downed line as an immediate hazard, not as an ordinary outage:
- Stay well away from the wire, poles, vehicles, fences, puddles, and objects touching it.
- Assume the line is energized even if it appears quiet, broken, or disconnected.
- Do not touch the wire or attempt to move it, and keep other people and pets away.
- If a vehicle is near the line, remain inside unless fire or another immediate danger requires an emergency exit; follow emergency responders’ instructions.
- Call 9-1-1 when there is immediate danger, a fallen line, fire, injury, or a traffic hazard. Then notify the electric utility as local instructions direct.
PG&E’s safety guidance says to stay away from a downed line, call 9-1-1, and then call PG&E; it also warns not to touch the line or an object in contact with it. That sequence is PG&E’s instruction, while the general rule everywhere is to keep away and contact emergency services for immediate danger. Do not inspect or repair utility equipment yourself.
Which outage source should I trust?
Use the source that best matches the question you are trying to answer. The local utility is primary for reporting and restoration at one address; a regulator directory helps you find that utility; an aggregator provides regional awareness.
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| Option | Authority for your address | Address-level detail | Freshness and limits | Actions available |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Local delivery utility map | Highest | Often supports an address search and incident details. | Use its timestamp and published cadence; widespread outages or traffic can delay updates. | Usually status, reporting, contact information, and sometimes alerts. |
| State utility regulator directory | Identifies the responsible utility | Usually links out rather than displaying your service status. | Directory pages may not show a live incident. | Finds the utility’s map or reporting channel. |
| Statewide aggregator | Regional context | May show incidents by area rather than a customer account or exact premise. | Can lag the utility and may cover only participating utilities or recent incidents. | Awareness, not normally direct outage reporting. |
For example, California’s Power Outage Incidents dataset says its layer is pulled from utility public maps and automatically updated every 15 minutes. The description also says it contains only recent outages and no historical data. Use it to see broad conditions, then move to the utility map for your address and report through the utility.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How can I find a utility when there is no national directory?
There is no single address-level outage map covering every American utility in the material available here. Service areas are divided among investor-owned utilities, municipal systems, and cooperatives, and state resources differ.
- Look at the utility or delivery-company name on your latest bill.
- Search your state public utility commission or utility regulatory commission for an electric-utility directory or outage-resources page.
- If you live in a city with a municipal utility, check the city’s official utility page.
- If you belong to an electric cooperative, check the cooperative’s official site or member materials.
- Verify that the map’s service territory includes your address before submitting personal information.
California’s regulator maintains a page of investor-owned utility map links, while Indiana’s regulator lists five large investor-owned utilities. Those pages demonstrate useful state-level approaches, not a complete national directory.
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What outage information should a utility provide?
Requirements depend on the jurisdiction. In a February 14, 2025 release, the Public Utility Commission of Texas announced an update to 16 Texas Administrative Code §25.52 requiring utilities that deliver power to retail electric customers to maintain online outage trackers. The Texas announcement describes tracker information such as service territory, approximate active-outage locations, report or identification time, estimated restoration time, restoration status, and last-updated time. It also describes ways to report outages or hazardous conditions, including one digital reporting method, and says the information must be available in English and Spanish.
Those are Texas-specific requirements, not a nationwide legal standard. The release quotes PUCT Chairman Thomas Gleeson: “When severe weather or any other threat to electric service hits, providing timely, accurate information to consumers is essential.” Where your utility’s page lacks one of these details, use the available reporting channel and ask the utility for status rather than assuming the outage is unrecognized.
What if the map or reporting page is unavailable?
- Try the utility’s main site rather than a saved deep link; utilities sometimes move storm pages during an event.
- Use the official telephone number printed on your bill or listed on the utility’s contact page.
- Try the utility’s official app or text-alert channel if you are already enrolled.
- Check the utility’s social or emergency-status notices only as supplemental information; do not send account details through an unverified account.
- For a dangerous wire, fire, injury, or other immediate hazard, call 9-1-1 regardless of website availability.
A failed map does not mean power is available or that the utility has received your report. Keep the outage report confirmation or note the time and channel you used.
How do I check whether service has been restored?
Return to the utility’s address lookup or status page and read the latest timestamp. If alerts are offered, enable them through the utility’s own enrollment process. Restoration estimates can change as crews inspect equipment and discover additional damage, so plan around the current status rather than treating an estimated time as a promise.
When your neighbors have power but your home does not, report the condition again. A neighborhood incident may be marked restored while an individual service connection, fuse, meter, or secondary line still requires attention. Do not open utility equipment or attempt an electrical repair; describe the continuing loss of service to the utility.
Quick Recap
Power-outage reporting checklist
- Identify the electric delivery utility from your bill, municipality, cooperative, or state regulator.
- Open the utility’s official “Outage Map,” “Outages,” or “Report Outage” page.
- Search by address, city or county, or map area as the utility allows.
- Read the incident timestamp, status, and estimated restoration information.
- Report the outage even when no marker appears.
- Use only the utility’s listed website, app, text channel, or telephone line.
- Save the confirmation and check status again after reporting.
- Stay away from downed lines and call 9-1-1 for immediate danger, then notify the utility as directed.
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