The trailers are moved to centralstaging sites to provide essential materials in the areas with the greatestdamage

The trailers are moved to centralstaging sites to provide essential materials in the areas with the greatestdamage.To further facilitate the restoration work, AIU has established a base camp inMarion to provide a centralized location to provide meals for personnel.Because of the shortage of motel rooms, the base camp also has trailers thatcan sleep about 200 AIU workers.”We also remind everyone that safety must be everyone’s first priority Stayaway from downed power lines Never operate a portable generator indoors. Whenoperating a portable generator, first open the main breaker or remove the mainfuses before connecting the generator to your electrical system,” Pate said.To report downed power lines or other problems, customers should call theAmeren Illinois Utilities: 1-888-672-5252 (AmerenCILCO), 1-888-789-2477(AmerenCIPS) and 1-800-755-7000 (AmerenIP). Customers who do not have accessto telephones may visit the temporary AIU Customer Service Center at thesouthwest entrance to Marion Mall close to the Sears It will be open throughTuesday from 8:00 a.m to 8:00 p.m. daily.According to the American Red Cross, storm shelters have been established atthe Senior Center, 507 W Main St., Marion; Herrin High School, 700 N TenthSt., Herrin; First Methodist Church of Herrin, 305 S.

16th St., Herrin;Rehabilitation & Care Center of Jackson County, 1441 N 14th St., Murphysboro;Community Building, 406 S. Poplar St., Bush; Christopher Civic Center, 208 N.Thomas St., Christopher, and Our Saviors Lutheran, 700 S University,Carbondale. For additional information, contact the Red Cross office at 665 N.Airport Rd., Murphysboro, at 1-618-988-1147.Current information on the electrical service restoration effort as well assafety advice and weather reports are available at IllinoisOutage .Residents who must repair customer-owned facilities, such as the meter base,weatherhead or point of attachment, should have this work performed by aprofessional electrical contractor. These repairs must be completed beforeservice can be safely restored.The Ameren Illinois Utilities (AmerenCIPS, AmerenCILCO, AmerenIP) have beenproviding safe, reliable energy delivery service for more than a century. TheAmeren Illinois Utilities deliver energy to 1.2 million electric and 840,000natural gas customers in more than 1,200 communities within a43,700-square-mile service territory.SAFETY ADVICE: Ameren offers these tips for your safety and for coping with power outages:Check on the elderly.If you know an elderly person in your neighborhood thatis without power, check on that person’s health Watch out for downed wires.

If you see a fallen or sagging wire, assume thatit is still energized and dangerous. Electric power lines can carry power evenafter being knocked to the ground Stay away and warn others to do the same.Pull some plugs. Turn off or disconnect the refrigerator, freezer, television,air conditioner and other major appliances that would go on automatically whenthe power is restored. This precaution will avoid overloading a circuit whenpower comes back on – and the chance of a second interruption.

After power isrestored, turn them on one at a time.Flip a switch. Turn one or two light switches on so you will know when yourservice is restored.There are also some steps you can take during and after a storm to ensure thesafety of your family, home and pets.Keep your food cold Resist the urge to peek in on the refrigerator andfreezer. Food will stay cold or frozen longer if the appliance stays closed.Use caution with your food. Check with your local health department andremember the rule, “When in doubt, throw it out!” The University of IllinoisExtension Service says these foods should be discarded after four hourswithout power:–Raw or cooked meat, poultry and seafood–Milk, cream, yogurt and soft cheeses–Cooked pasta and pasta salads–Custard, chiffon and cheese pies–Fresh eggs and egg substitutes–Meat-topped pizza and lunch meats–Casseroles, soups and stews–Mayonnaise and tartar sauce–Cookie doughThese foods should be safe for a few days without power:–Butter and margarine–Fresh fruits and vegetables–Opened jars of salad dressing, jelly, relish, taco sauce, barbecuesauce, mustard, ketchup and olives–Hard and processed cheesesSOURCEAmeren Illinois UtilitiesAmeren Illinois Utilities, +1-217-424-6400. SANTA BARBARA, California (Reuters) – Making the most of cooler, moist weather, firefighters gained an upper hand on Sunday against a stubborn wildfire that has blazed for six days at the edge of Santa Barbara, burning dozens of homes and forcing thousands of residents to flee. U.S.  |  Green BusinessAs of Sunday, fire crews had established containment lines around more than half the blaze, which has charred more than 8,700 acres in the foothills above the scenic and largely affluent coastal town 90 miles northwest of Los Angeles, authorities told reporters.Less than a third of the fire had been corralled by late Saturday, after hot, dry, erratic winds abated, giving way to lower temperatures, fog and mist blowing in from the ocean.

firefighters also made headway overnight.With the immediate threat to the city proper averted for the time being, most of the remaining 15,000 evacuees were permitted to return to their homes on Sunday but were advised to remain ready to flee again at a moment’s notice.”We are not out of the woods yet,” said Kelly Goethe of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. “One little spark in 50-mph (80-kph) winds and we’re right back to where we were a couple of days ago.”He said dangerous “sundowner” winds, which typically gust through mountain passes from the desert after nightfall, could reappear in the next couple of days. For that reason, most of the 4,200 personnel on the fire line would remain in place for the time being.Some 30,500 people, about a third of Santa Barbara’s population, had been under mandatory evacuation orders at the height of the fire threat on Friday.According to latest estimates, the so-called Jesuit fire, the fourth major wildfire to strike Santa Barbara in two years, has destroyed 31 homes and damaged nearly 50 others.No civilian casualties have been reported since the blaze began Tuesday but 18 firefighters were hurt, including three who suffered severe burns and smoke inhalation when they were overrun by flames on Wednesday, fire officials said.The cause of the blaze remained under investigation.(Writing by Steve Gorman; Editing by Bill Trott) U.S. Green Business. TOKYO, May 11 (Reuters) – Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking, thetrust banking unit of Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc (8306.T)denied on Monday a report that it was in talks to scrap a planned$254 million purchase of Citigroup Inc’s (C.N) Japanese trustbank. Stocks  |  Mergers & Acquisitions  |  Global Markets  |  Japan Japan’s Mainichi newspaper said over the weekend thatMitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking had entered the final stages ofdeliberations to scrap a deal to buy NikkoCiti Trust & Bankingfor about 25 billion yen “There are no such talks. There is no truth to the report,” aMitsubishi UFJ Trust spokesman said.