Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

Sylvania Power Repair

Photos and story by James Hill

Weather reports indicate the possibility of inclement weather tomorrow, which could result in a weather-related closure or late opening on Thursday morning, March 1.

We also learned this week that Sylvania’s main electrical feed is in need of repair, and today it was confirmed that PGE will be repairing it late tonight through early Thursday morning, March 1, between 11:30 p.m. (2/29) to approximately 4 a.m. (3/1), with power outage during this window of time.

All Employees and Students

You should not notice any change in network connectivity as a result of this outage. A back-up generator is in place to ensure that the data center is operational and network services are continuous. However, in the unlikely event that the generator does not function properly and we lose network services for a short time, this may impede our ability to notify students and employees of a weather-related closure or late opening early Thursday morning. While the timing of the repair is not ideal given the weather, it is critical that we move forward with it tonight given the risk of a longer power outage. Thank you for your understanding.

If we do not have access to the network, we will not be able to post weather related closures on MyPCC or www.pcc.edu. However, we will be able to post information via Flash Alert. This information goes to a variety of news outlets and also goes directly to individuals who have signed up for Flash Alert (you can do so at www.flashalert.net/signup). So, we encourage you to register for Flash Alert and check with other media tomorrow morning if the weather is questionable. Again this is a remote possibility, but one we wanted to alert you to.

Sylvania Employees and Students

During this shutdown Sylvania buildings will have emergency lighting only. Only equipment powered by the emergency generator (equipment in the data center, food service refrigerators, etc.) will be operational. Building outlets will not have power. Anything plugged into walls will not be operational. There will be no heat during the shutdown, and all air handling systems will be off.

Aside from specified personnel associated with the shutdown, no one should be on site during this timeframe. Facilities Management Services and Public Safety will have staff here for the duration of the shutdown, and PCC will have electricians and its generator contractor on site as well, throughout the operation and after 4 a.m. to ensure functionality once power is restored.