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Hidalgo County is celebrating the success of its generator program amid wide-ranging power outages over the weekend.
There were more than 12,000 power outages affecting residents throughout Hidalgo County over the weekend. According to the county, those outages could have proven lethal if not for the Hidalgo County Community Service Agency’s Power Up Generator (PUG) program.
The program provides generators through the Hidalgo County CSA to residents with medical necessities after they have participated in a generator safety training program given by the Hidalgo County Fire Marshal’s Office.
The generators helped provide power to at least three local residents with medical necessities, the county said in a news release.
“This is what we are in business for,” Hidalgo County Judge Richard F. Cortez said in the release.
The power outages were the result of a series of fires on utility poles in different locations throughout Hidalgo County on Sunday. The affected utility poles carry lines used for transmitting electricity.
“A quick survey of 25 PUG participants was taken earlier this week and three of them reported their use of the generators to sustain the flow of oxygen that they need to supplement their breathing,” the news release read. “Currently, there are 70 Hidalgo County families participating in this program.”
The residents who made use of the PUG program generators are from Weslaco, Edinburg and Pharr.
For more information about the PUG program, call the Hidalgo County Community Service Agency at (956) 383-6240.
