Westar Energy

Westar Energy Tuesday announced earnings of $61 million, or $0.48 per share, for the second quarter 2012 compared with earnings of $44 million, or $0.38 per share, for the second quarter 2011. Earnings for the six months ended June 30, 2012 were $89 million, or $0.70 per share, compared with $75 million, or $0.66 per share, for the same period in 2011. Per share results for both periods in 2012 reflect additional shares outstanding as a result of the company having issued shares to fund capital investments.

Westar Energy wants customers to be on alert after several report suspicious calls claiming to be from the company. In the calls, the company says the caller claims to be a service representative and tells customers a check bounced or a bill is past due. The caller will ask customers to provide credit card information or other personal information. If the caller is questioned, the company says the caller provides a call-back number that goes to an adult entertainment business.

Granted, Thursday's weather was a bit more bearable than Wednesday.      Westar Energy says more energy was used July 14 than any other day in 2010 - so far.  (As the summer goes on, that may change.)      More energy used by you means more money paid by you.  But it doesn't have to be that way.      Carole Ranney does a lot of things her mother did.  Like her mother, she makes jelly.  As Ranney puts it, "We've always just been kind of frugal in what we do. "      Unlike her mother, she makes it in a kitchen with air-conditioning.

Westar Energy is warning customers about a scam that has hit several states. The scam claims the federal government is providing credits or applying payments to customers' utility bills. The scammers ask for personal information, like Social Security numbers, saying the information is needed to apply payments to customer's utility bills. Westar says when it makes collection calls, it does not ask for personal information, because that info is already in their records.

Westar Energy is sending crews to help restore power to areas that were hit by strong thunderstorms in West Virginia. Millions were left without power in the eastern United States. Contract crews will be sending 41 Westar lineman, supervisors, safety and support personnel to assist with restoration efforts. Employees from Westar's Topeka, Marysville, Hutchinson, Atchison, Pittsburg, Independence, Newton, Arkansas City, and Wichita offices will assist.

Westar Energy has asked the Kansas Corporation Commission (KCC) to increase its base prices about 5.85 percent. They say the increase for a typical residential customer would be about $6.50 per month. KWCH Eyewitness News reporter Jim Grawe will have more on this story tonight on the evening news and KWCH.com

Days of triple digit temperatures are driving high energy use, and that means homeowners could be facing high electric bills. Westar Energy is bringing representatives to several of its service areas to help customers who may have trouble dealing with a large bill. Company officials say they are talking with customers about options like setting up an average payment plan, where customers pay a fixed average all year long, or a payment plan to deal with high or overdue bills.

Small upgrades to your home can save you money on your next electric bill. But in this economy, officials at Westar Energy say people are skipping those projects. Federal stimulus money is trying to change that by creating a new loan program for home upgrades. All over your home are ways to save money on energy. They're often hard to see, unless you look through Shawn Patterson's eyes. "That's what I help people identify," he said. "What they can do cost effectively and what they need to hire someone to do or forego all together.

Westar Energy is asking customers to watch out for suspicious behavior in and around their neighborhoods because of recent copper thefts at Westar facilities.  Copper thefts across Westar's service territory have caused expensive damage to equipment and resulted in a number of power outages. “For scrap metal's relatively small value, thieves are willing to endanger our customers, and our linemen and substation employees, cause our customers to have power outages, and ruin expensive equipment that provides one of the most essential services for homes and businesses.

Many homeowners have been turning down the heat as the temperatures rise in the mild winter. Still, several residents tell Eyewitness News their latest electric bill nearly doubled. Jim Keazer, Westar Energy customer, said he was shocked to see his bill jumped considerably from previous months. He said his bill was $100 more than what he normally pays in a two bedroom townhouse. "I haven't changed a single thing," Keazer said. "We keep our thermostat set to 68 degrees. I haven't bought any brand new appliances.

As the sun comes up, residents in Clearwater are back to work cleaning up after an EF-1 tornado struck Sunday afternoon.  Roads in the area have been closed since the tornado, and emergency workers tell us they don't expect those roads to be back open any time soon. As of Monday morning, 135th Street (Clearwater Road) is back open.  Crews hope to have 119th and Tyler back open this afternoon. Crews with Westar Energy are also working to restore power to more than a thousand customers.  Slowly but surely, the lights are coming back on for south Sedgwick County residents.  Outages were also reported in Butler and Sumner Counties.

750 people in downtown Wichita are without power this morning. Westar Energy doesn't yet know what caused the outage. They have crews out working to fix the problem and figure out what caused it. In the meantime, they are trying to re-route power to as many customers as possible.

The spring storm has left its mark in Hutchinson.  The ice overnight coated trees, causing many limbs to snap off. The tree limbs landed on many cars, causing quite a bit of damage. Click here for Storm Shots In Hutchinson the ice brought down not just branches, but, at times, entire trees.  The ice is coating everything, thickly. "I hate scraping windows," said Hutchinson resident Amy Walden, cleaning off her car.  "It takes too much time, you have to get up earlier and it's just too cold.

Watch out for door-to-door scam artists posing as electrical workers. That's the warning from Wichita Police after an 85-year-old woman was targeted. It's similar to a case that happened in Derby Tuesday night. "If they are not sure of the person, they need to call the company before they allow them in their house and that really goes for anybody," said Wichita Police Lieutenant Joe Schroeder. Schroeder says an elderly woman in a northwest neighborhood was scammed by two men posing as KG&E workers.

Westar Energy wants customers to be on alert for imposters. The electric utility says it received a report of a man claiming to be a Westar Energy employee going door-to-door in the Derby area. The imposter is trying to access homes saying he's performing home electricity audits. Westar says the man does not work for them or any of their partner companies. The company says all Westar Energy workers wear clothing bearing the Westar logo and carry company identification. One of the men was described as approximately 40 years of age, 6 feet tall, and 200 lbs. The men were driving a newer gray or black truck with an extended cab. If someone comes to your door claiming to be from Westar, the company says you should ask them for identification.

Westar Energy and Eyewitness News have been inundated with phone calls after a Wednesday night report concerning higher electric bills. "I'm just, kind of,  in the fog on this.  But, basically, I'd just like to know, how this happened.  I don't have no choice but to pay it," said Ron Letourneau, who wonders what happened to his electric bill this month.   He's just another Westar customer who has to pay more than expected. Eyewitness News first told you about the problem last night.  Today Westar says it's heard from many customers.  Some of those customers told us their bill doubled, or more, in the last month.  So what's the problem?

Many homeowners have been turning down the heat as the temperatures rise in the mild winter. Still, several residents tell Eyewitness News their latest electric bill nearly doubled. Jim Keazer, Westar Energy customer, said he was shocked to see his bill jumped considerably from previous months. He said his bill was $100 more than what he normally pays in a two bedroom townhouse. "I haven't changed a single thing," Keazer said. "We keep our thermostat set to 68 degrees. I haven't bought any brand new appliances.

Westar Energy is sending a warning to customers about suspicious phone calls. Several people have contacted the energy company, saying that they have received a fraudulent phone call. The scammer claims to be a Westar Energy customer service representative, claiming the customer's bill is past due. The caller then tries to gain access to personal information. Westar said legitimate calls should show a 800-383-1183 phone number and Westar Energy caller ID. The representative should also be able to verify their name and extension.

"It's ridiculous in twenty degree weather.  It should've been at springtime.  I mean, I don't know what the rush is for," said Rodney Rojas about a scheduled power outage in his neighborhood. Wichitans in the southside neighborhood want to know why Westar chose Wednesday to turn off their power for tree trimming.  They told Eyewitness News it wasn't the power outage that upset them so much as the timing. The outage only lasted about an hour to an hour and a half.  But it was cold out Wednesday morning.  And no matter how careful they were, residents said it was getting cold inside their homes, too. "Oh, it was getting cold, quick.  It sure was, yeah," said Rojas.  "I mean, you could feel it dropping in here quick.

The Sedgwick County Zoo, Westar Energy and the City of Wichita have teamed up to give away free firewood and mulch this winter. The wood is what's left from Westar's tree-trimming efforts and the city's forestry tree pruning and removal operations. The public can pick up free firewood and wood chips in the Sedgwick County Zoo parking log between now and February from 7:00 am and 5:00 pm.  Wood is normally delivered between 3:30 and 4:30 pm. Organizers as that you refrain from using chainsaws, splitters or other mechanical equipment when picking up the wood.