Pepco's utility service unreliable in D.C area

Over the past year, severe weather in the Washington D.C. area has led to frequent power outages, and called attention to the service of utility provider Pepco.  "One of Pepco's standard explanations for the frequency and duration of its outages -- dense tree cover -- does not hold up under scrutiny, a three-month Washington Post analysis has found. By far, Pepco equipment failures, not trees, caused the most sustained power interruptions last year, records show."