As the Big Bend and South Georgia deal with extreme cold weather, local governments and energy companies are asking neighbors to be mindful of their energy consumption.
Utilities say long periods of freezing temperatures leads to higher-than-normal energy demand, especially between 5 and 10 a.m.
That high demand can lead to system failures and costly utility bills.
Big Bend utility companies like Talquin and Duke Energy sent notices telling neighbors to be mindful of peak times and avoid using large appliances like washers and dryers.
They also recommend adjusting thermostats to the lowest comfortable setting.
Duke Energy also recommends turning off unnecessary plug-ins, devices, and lights. They also say you should try to charge an electric vehicle during the afternoon when demand is lower.
Utilities say the restraint can help keep the grid up and running reliably for everyone.
The City of Tallahassee's electric utility says the city almost hit a record peak load Sunday morning at 9 a.m. That record was set back in 2010. The city expects to break the record on Monday morning.
A release from the city says this January was one of the coldest in decades for Tallahassee with almost one-third of the evenings dipping below 32°F, according to the National Weather Service.
The city says that lingering cold will lead to higher-than-normal utility bills.
To help ease the burden of those bills on neighbors, the city says they're launching their Weather Relief Assistance Program (WRAP), which allows neighbors to spread the balance of their January or February bill evenly over the next four months.
You can learn more about that program here.
After the 2025 winter storm hit the Big Bend, some neighbors saw their utility costs double. Some neighbors in Quincy had even higher costs after the city did not read utility meters on time.
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