Winds are forecast to reach up to 50 miles per hour this week, which has utility companies watching the weather closely and preparing for the possibility of more power outages right before the holidays.

Companies like Minnesota Power, Superior, Water, Light and Power, Lake Country Power, Xcel Energy and more worked tirelessly for about five days to restore power to tens of thousands of people who were left in the dark during last week’s blizzard.

Now, the wet, heavy snow from that storm is frozen onto tree branches, weighing them down and making it even more likely that they, or the entire tree itself, cold fall on power lines when winds pick up this week.

Minnesota Power spokespeople say their crews have been working tirelessly since last week’s storm to pre-emptively remove trees that threaten power lines and could cause an outage.

“Despite the preventative tree removals, power outages are still possible during this storm. Travel and working conditions are expected to be hazardous and difficult at times and could slow any response during what is expected to be bitterly cold and windy weather,” Minnesota Power Director of Corporate Communications Amy Rutledge wrote.

Minnesota Power and SWL&P are part of the Midwest Mutual Assistance Network, and plan to call on additional resources from neighboring utilities depending on the number of outages they’re dealing with.

“It is important to note that severe weather is predicted for much of the country, and resources are limited as utilities across the nation are responding to, preparing for or assessing weather-related outages,” Rutledge wrote.

Meanwhile, Lake Country Power General Manager Mark Bakk is also preparing his crews to respond in case of an emergency.

“We’re fully stocked up on materials coming out what we just came out of,” Bakk said. “We’ve got everything gassed up, we’ve got fuses stocked up from the last (storm) and we’re ready to go if needed.”

While Bakk says his team is doing everything they can to prevent an outage, he echoed the National Weather Service’s that his members should take precautions now in case it were to happen.

He said if you plan to use a backup generator, you should make sure the proper switch gear is in place so that generator can’t back-feed the distribution system Lake Country Power crews are working on.

Local law enforcement agencies are also sharing advice for what Northlanders can do now to prepare for chance of an outage.

They shared the following tips on their Facebook page Tuesday:

-Plan for a water supply in case the weather doesn’t allow for you to travel. Pick up more water jugs, cases of water, or melt snow if you need to. A few days supply more than anticipated is best.

-Plan for food that does not have to be cooked if you don’t have an alternative cooking method when the power is out. If you are using grills, camp stoves, etc., plan for safety accordingly.

-If you are running a generator, plan for ventilation. Please see our prior post regarding this.

-Think outside the box when it comes to refrigerated/frozen items and store them outside if you need to.

If you need to travel, please watch for downed lines. Do not drive over them!

Please check on your neighbors and relatives. A phone call to check in always helps. The Sheriff’s Office is not always able to check every road or residence, but we will respond when able.

If you have problem trees in your yard that are being weighed down by snow, Isaac Kasper the UMD Grounds and Fleet supervisor, suggests the best course of action may be to leave them alone for now.

He says the frozen snow would likely be hard to remove and could be dangerous to shake off.