Power Out? What to Do and When to Call an Electrician

When the power goes out, the first question is always the same: is this an OG&E problem, or my problem? Here's how to tell — and what's safe to do while you figure it out.

Step 1: Check if it's just you

Look outside. Are your neighbors' lights on? Are streetlights and traffic signals working? If you're the only dark house on the block, the problem is almost certainly inside your home, at the panel or in the meter base. If the whole block is dark, it's an OG&E outage.

Step 2: Report the outage to OG&E

If it's a utility-side outage, report it through the OG&E outage map or by calling them. They restore based on size of outage, critical infrastructure, and resource availability. There's nothing you can speed up.

Step 3: If it's just you, check the main breaker

Open your main electrical panel. Look at the largest breaker at the top. That's the main breaker. If it's tripped (sitting in the middle position rather than full ON), flip it to OFF first, then back to ON. If it stays on, you're back in business. If it trips immediately, stop. Don't keep resetting it.

When to call an electrician right now

• Burning smell from the panel. Anything from "warm electronics" to actual smoke. This is an emergency.
• The main breaker trips immediately on reset. Something is drawing current it shouldn't.
• Half the house is out. A "split" outage: one leg of your service is down. This is often a loose service neutral, which is dangerous.
• You hear buzzing or popping from the panel or any outlet.
• Lights are dim throughout the house after coming back on, or one room is dim while another is too bright.
• The meter on the side of your house is making noise, sparking, or smoking.

What's safe to wait on until morning

• One outlet that's been dead for weeks (not new).
• A tripped circuit breaker on a non-critical circuit that resets cleanly.
• A flickering light bulb that's been doing it for months.

What never to do

• Never run a generator into your house through an outlet ("backfeeding"). It can kill an OG&E line worker on the other end of the line. Always use a transfer switch.
• Never remove the cover from your panel if you're not a licensed electrician. The bus bars behind it are live even with the main breaker off, due to backfeed from the meter.
• Never reset a breaker repeatedly if it keeps tripping. The breaker is doing its job. Find out why before you keep resetting it.

Call us if any of the above is happening

We answer 24/7. Burning smell, hot panel, sparking outlet, partial power loss. Call (405) 436-4776 right now and we'll dispatch a licensed electrician.