BROCHURE TO OFFER TIPS FOR MANAGING IN POWER OUTAGES.

Byline: Sherry Joe Crosby Daily News Staff Writer

Inspired by last summer's massive power outages, a coalition of city and public agencies is creating an emergency outreach plan to keep residents out of the dark.

By February, the coalition hopes to issue a brochure that will show residents steps to take during a blackout and how to conserve energy.

``We just want to make sure that residents are well prepared, and an outreach program will provide easy steps they can follow,'' said Adele Macpherson, the city's community service superintendent.

To assemble the plan, the city is working with Southern California Edison, the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department, California Highway Patrol, water suppliers and sanitation districts.

The plan was prompted by last summer's massive power failures that affected millions of people in the Western United States, Canada and Mexico.

In August, a power outage that originated in Oregon cut electricity to 4 million people from Canada to Mexico. A smaller outage occurred in July when a tree fell onto a power line in Idaho, cutting power to 2 million people in 15 states and parts of Mexico and Canada.

``Power outages are a reality, and we're all very lucky here,'' Macpherson said, noting that the coalition members all have backup generators in case of emergencies. ``If there's a long-term power outage, people should know what they could do to help the situation as well as themselves.''

In a related development, the City Council on Tuesday approved a draft disaster plan that coordinates state and local emergency efforts.

The system outlines the proper procedures for training and responding to disasters. The council will formally adopt the plan once the state Office of Emergency Services evaluates and approves it.