The recent power outages experienced by the residents of Springfield, Illinois and surrounding towns brought about the need to discuss change.  Thousands of residents were impacted by the storm and lack of power.  The storm brought damage to several neighborhoods.  However, a key factor was missing in keeping residents informed.  Communications from the City of Springfield, the local media and CWLP were sorely lacking.

Residents struggled with clean up efforts. Little to no information was available for when power was going to be restored.  The problems ranged from finding alternative housing due to no air conditioning, to disposing of spoiled food to the lack of supplies (batteries and ice.) 

The CWLP outage map was not user-friendly.  Residents without power would enter their address and be told that there were no outages to their home. There was no automated system for updates.  There were no "live" customer service people available on the phone. It took days for the "map" to register a reported outage.

Things need to improve in pushing out emergency information to Springfield residents and towns impacted by natural disasters. The time is now for us to ask our mayor, alderman and the power company to initiate change. 

1) Emergency notices should be pushed out by phone or email to residents on what natural disaster events have taken place and where to find resources.

2) Utility companies such as CWLP must have a plan in place to communicate to residents the status and estimated timeframe for repairs.

3) There should be the development of a task force or volunteer group of residents who can take phone calls or address emails during the course of a natural disaster.

4) The local news television and radio stations should be held accountable for reporting on the natural disaster story, available resources and updates for local residents.

5) The city council should be held accountable to address this major disaster and begin the process to make improvements for disaster recovery and communications efforts with residents.

Please sign this petition if you agree that change is needed.  Contact your alderman or other city officials to express your need to drive change for a safer Springfield, Illinois.