Power out?
Sparks? Burning smell?
Do not wait it out. Call us right now. The after-hours line in Lake Charles goes to a person, not a phone tree, and we roll a truck.
If you smell gas or see active flame, call 911 first.
Is this an emergency?
If anything on the left list applies, call now. If you're on the right list, the regular request flow gets you a written quote from the local team.
Active danger or full power loss
- Burning smell from a receptacle, panel, or fixture
- Visible sparks or arcing at any outlet, switch, or panel
- Whole-home dark while the neighbors' lights stay on (that is on you, not the grid)
- A breaker that won't reset or trips back inside seconds
- Outlets or switches running hot to the touch
- Standing water touching outlets, the panel, or fixtures (common after Laura / Delta-class storms)
- Storm-damaged service mast or weatherhead, downed lines (also call Entergy or Cleco)
Important, but not emergency
- One outlet or switch quit, no smell, no heat
- Lights flickering on and off in one room
- A panel that is old but holding (FPE Stab-Lok, Zinsco), schedule the upgrade before storm season
- Buying or selling, the inspector flagged something on the report
- Adding a circuit, sizing up service, or running an EV charger on the carport
- Any new install you have lead time on
What to do until we arrive.
Pull the main breaker at the panel, that kills power to the whole house. Then leave it alone until we get there. Do not chase the issue room-to-room with the power live.
Hands off, keep pets and kids out of the room, kill the breaker for that circuit at the panel if you can spot it. If you cannot, drop the main.
Stop resetting it. Repeated trips on a fault can wreck the breaker and stress the panel bus. Leave it down and call us.
Step back. Power has to be off at the main before anyone goes near standing water close to outlets, fixtures, or the panel. Wait until we say it is safe before you flip anything back on.
Common emergency questions, answered fast
What counts as an electrical emergency?
Burning smell at a receptacle or panel, smoke or sparks at any electrical equipment, full power loss with no Entergy or Cleco outage on the map, partial power across multiple circuits, or a panel running hot to the touch. Anything you think might be a fire or shock risk gets handled as an emergency. We dispatch on those calls whatever time it is.
Should I shut off the main breaker before you arrive?
If there is smoke, sparks, a burning smell, or any live hazard, yes. Kill the main and get clear of the affected area. If the symptom is intermittent (a circuit cycling on and off, lights flickering) you can leave the main up and just turn off the affected circuit at the panel. Never touch wet electrical equipment, especially after a flood event.
How fast can you actually respond?
For active emergencies inside Calcasieu Parish and the SWLA core, we aim for same-day dispatch when crews are free. Realistic arrival on most calls is inside a couple of hours when traffic and crew positioning cooperate. We give you an honest ETA on the call rather than promising a number we cannot hit. Outside the regular zone we still respond, the drive is just longer.
Do you charge extra for after-hours dispatch?
Yes, after-hours and weekend work runs a higher labor rate than scheduled jobs because the crew is being pulled outside normal hours. We tell you the rate on the call before we roll the truck so the invoice is no surprise. For real fire-or-shock emergencies the rate conversation does not slow us down getting there.
What if the issue is the utility company, not my system?
If we trace the problem to a utility-side issue (damaged drop, transformer, meter base damage that is Entergy or Cleco's responsibility) we tell you on the spot and help you open the ticket with the utility. We do not bill emergency rates for the time spent confirming a utility issue if that is what is actually going on.
Will you fix it on the same visit?
When we have the parts on the truck, yes. For specific panels, breakers, or service-entrance gear that has to be sourced, we make the system safe at the first visit and schedule the replacement as soon as the part lands. We do not leave a homeowner in an unsafe state regardless of stock.
Not an emergency? Pick the matching service.
Each page lays out scope, what we look at, and the warranty before you book.