Mississippi Public Service Commission is urging the public to stay away from utility crews working in the field.
“These employees are working hard to ensure the public has essential services, like electricity and gas,” said Chairman Dane Maxwell. “When someone approaches these field workers, it can create a dangerous situation for the employees and the person who approaches them. It’s imperative that people stay safely away.”
"As we take precautions to protect ourselves during this crisis, we must be reminded that our utility workers continue their daily work in the field to ensure that we have the various utility services we need," Central District Commissioner Brent Bailey said. "Utility personnel and crews are taking special measures to help keep our lights, gas and water on and we ask you to help us all stay healthy and safe by adhering to CDC and MSDH guidelines and keep your distance from utility workers and work zones."
“We ask each Mississippian to please not complicate this crisis or make it more dangerous by approaching utility workers,” Northern District Commissioner Brandon Presley said. “These employees are critical to keeping our utility infrastructure up and running during COVID-19 and we need all citizens to commit to helping by staying away from these utility workers and adhering to health guidelines. We cannot afford to make this situation worse because of careless behavior.”
Work sites can have any number of hidden dangers for the public, and distracting crews can cause accidents to happen. Practicing social distancing (six or more feet apart) is the best way to keep a safe distance from crews, so that citizens and workers can stay healthy and virus-free.
These workers provide an essential service and are working to ensure power and gas continues to flow to homes and businesses during these challenging times. Anyone who has a question about their utility’s service should contact the utility provider by phone, website or mobile app if available.
Atmos Energy understands that the coronavirus outbreak may cause some of our valued customers to experience financial difficulty, whether because of illness, quarantine or a disruption at work. As part of its commitment to serving and working with its customers throughout this difficult time, Atmos Energy has temporarily suspended natural gas disconnections during the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Atmos Energy’s commitment to safety and culture have led us during unique times. This will be no different,” said Kevin Akers, president and CEO of Atmos Energy. “We will maintain our attention to detail and our sense of urgency as we stand ready to take care of our valued customers and employees while delivering the clean, safe, affordable and reliable energy our customers require.” Among the ways that Atmos Energy supports those who need it most, “Sharing the Warmth” is a program that leverages the generosity of customer donations with additional contributions by Atmos Energy to amplify the amount of assistance offered. Atmos Energy then partners with local nonprofit agencies to effectively reach those customers. Customers who need help paying their bill may visit https://www.atmosenergy.com/customer-service/get-help-paying-your-bill to locate the nearest community action agency for assistance.
Atmos Energy also offers Budget Billing, which is based on a rolling, 12-month average of the bill and adjusts monthly, providing a more predictable amount due every month.
For more information, our customer service team is available at 888-286-6700. Thank you for being a valued customer.
About Atmos Energy
Atmos Energy Corporation is the nation’s largest fully regulated, natural gas-only distributor of safe, clean, efficient and affordable energy.
