December 5, 2002

RICHMOND, Va. - Dominion linemen and their crews battled through slushy snow and ice, fallen trees, broken utility poles and downed power lines Thursday to reconnect customers who lost electricity during the first storm of the 2002-03 winter.

As of 3:30 p.m., the storm had affected about 58,000 Dominion customers, with service restored to about 40,000. About 18,000 customers remained without power, including about 8,800 in the Dominion North Carolina Power service area around Roanoke Rapids. About 8,500 customers in Central Virginia were without power.

Dominion estimates that most customers will have their power restored by late Thursday night with the exception of those in the Roanoke Rapids area, who are projected to have their lights back on by late Friday night. Dominion moved additional crews into the Roanoke Rapids area Thursday to help restore service.

Dominion put together a 2,200-member field team in preparation for the storm. The wintry mix included a band of freezing rain, which poses a greater threat to power systems than snow or sleet. Ice accumulations add substantial weight to power lines, utility poles, supporting crossarms and especially tree branches, causing them to bend into and knock down power lines and poles.

Dominion (NYSE: D) has a diversified and integrated energy portfolio consisting of about 24,000 megawatts of generation. Dominion also serves more than 3.8 million franchise natural gas and electric customers in five states. For more information about Dominion, visit the company's Web site at www.dom.com.

# # #