As experts anticipate a prolonged wildfire season, Batteries Plus Bulbs offers precautions.

HARTLAND, Wis. — Last year’s public safety power shut-offs left more than 2.6 million California residents without power for varying amounts of time. With longer, more intense wildfire seasons projected for 2020, it’s more important than ever for Californians to be prepared to be without power for an extended period of time and ready to evacuate their homes at a moment’s notice.

Batteries Plus Bulbs, the nation’s largest battery and light bulb franchise, is sharing five precautions that California residents can take in order to stay powered up through a power outage or evacuation.

  1. Store an Emergency Kit in Your Home: Stock your kit with first-aid supplies, nonperishable food, bottled water, a battery-powered radio, flashlights, a portable charger and extra batteries.
  2. Purchase a Generator: A generator can be a great investment if you’re concerned about powering up your home during an extended power outage. Have a backup battery on hand for your generator and familiarize yourself with how it operates ahead of time.
  3. Stock Up on Backup Batteries for Essential Devices: Purchase backup batteries for mobility scooters, glucose meters, hearing aids and other medical devices. Also consider whether backup batteries could be useful for other items in your home, like your sump pump.
  4. Keep an Emergency Kit in Your Car: Include jumper cables, a jack, wheel wrench and other basic tools in addition to bottled water, a first-aid kit and an inverter that allows you to plug devices like phones or laptops into your car battery to charge.
  5. Have Spare Keys Handy: To avoid searching for your keys while evacuating, keep a spare set in a handy location. Make sure your extra keys include a fob with a fully charged battery.

“Being prepared before a public safety power shut-off is announced will allow California residents to avoid needing to scramble for supplies at the last minute,” said Scott Williams, CEO of Batteries Plus Bulbs. “They can stop by their local Batteries Plus Bulbs store to stock up on batteries, flashlights and other products that will help them stay safe in an emergency.”

To learn more about staying powered up during wildfire season, visit Batteries Plus Bulbs’ emergency preparedness page, or visit your nearest Batteries Plus Bulbs store.

About Batteries Plus Bulbs:

Batteries Plus Bulbs, founded in 1988 and headquartered in Hartland, WI, is a leading omni channel retailer of batteries, specialty light bulbs and phone repair services for the direct-to-consumer and commercial channels. The retailer also offers key programming, replacement and cutting services. Through a nationwide network of stores, the company offers a differentiated value proposition of unrivaled product selection, in-stock availability and customer service. Batteries Plus Bulbs is owned by Freeman Spogli, a private equity firm based in Los Angeles and New York City. For additional information, visit www.batteriesplus.com.