Emergency Electrician in Portland, Maine

A wire down in the street, a transformer that went dark with a bang, or a whole block without lights is Central Maine Power’s to fix. Stay well back from any fallen line, treat it as live and report it to CMP or 911. When the fault is inside the building, the signs are different: a burning smell with no obvious source, an outlet or panel cover warm to the touch, sparks at a plug, lights that dim hard when the heat starts, or a main breaker that will not reset. In any of those cases, switch off the affected circuit or the main if it can be reached safely, and call 911 first if there is smoke. Never pull a fuse or reset a scorched breaker to see whether the problem comes back.

Ownership matters for storm damage. CMP owns the service drop down to the weatherhead and the meter; the mast, the meter socket and everything beyond it belong to the property, which means an electrician repairs them. Portland’s nor’easters regularly bring high winds and a foot or more of snow, and ice sliding off a steep city roof can pull a drop hard enough to bend a mast or rip a meter socket off the siding. After saltwater flooding like January 2024’s, any panel, outlet or appliance that sat in water should be inspected before power returns rather than simply switched back on.

In a triple-decker or a converted Victorian, one failed service can leave several households dark at once, so speed matters. Goodnow Electric answers emergency calls around the clock, makes the hazard safe first, and then separates what can be repaired that night from what needs a planned fix. Work on the service entrance means CMP must pull the meter and later reset it, which Goodnow Electric books, and the lasting repair goes on file with the city’s permitting office so the owner, the insurer and a future buyer can all see it was inspected. In older buildings a fault is often a single overheated connection, and finding that point is the difference between a repair and a repeat call.