GRANTS PASS, Ore. — Power outages that initially affected more than 18,000 households or businesses during last week's winter storms have been reduced to just 500 customers remaining without electricity, Pacific Power said on Monday.

The company restored service for about 1,000 customers by Sunday night as crews continued to clear downed trees and repair damaged lines.

"Pacific Power crews expect to see good restoration progress throughout today," the company said in a statement on Monday. "The remaining pockets of outages are spread out from an area north of Grants Pass to south of Cave Junction, concentrated in the west side of Josephine County. Similar to previous days, repair work is taking place in difficult to reach, remote areas."

Some remaining customers could see their power restored by the end of Tuesday or into Wednesday, according to Pacific Power — but the bulk of them should see their electricity return by late Monday evening.

“We are thankful for our customers’ patience and understanding as our crews and contract personnel made steady progress over the past few days to restore service,” said David Lucas, Pacific Power's vice president of transmission and distribution.

Pacific Power encouraged customers to report outages by calling 1-877-508-5088 or text OUT to 722797. You can text STAT to 722797 to check the status of your outage.

Pacific Power suggested the following tips and safety precautions to "ease the inconvenience of power outages" and help crews in restoring power:

• Stay away from all downed power lines and utility lines. Even if the lines are not sparking, they could be energized and extremely dangerous. Call 911 and report the outage to Pacific Power at 1-877-508-5088.
• Don’t drive over downed power lines.
• Turn on your porch light. After crews complete repairs, they patrol the area of the power failure to see if any lights are still out
• Check on your neighbors, especially those who may need special assistance. Also, check with others who have electricity, to see if you can visit.
• If you have power at this time, keep mobile devices charged so that may be used in an emergency. Before anything happens, download the Pacific Power app to your smart device so you can have information readily available.
• Remember your pets! Pets who spend a lot of time outdoors need more food in the winter because keeping warm depletes energy.
• If you are using alternate heat or cooking sources, remember to allow plenty of ventilation. Never burn charcoal for heating or cooking indoors.
• If you are using a generator, make sure to follow all manufacturer’s instructions. Make sure the generator is outside and not near any household air intakes. Do not connect the generator directly to your breaker box as this can create a dangerous situation for crews working on the powerlines. Instead plug essential appliances directly into the generator.

As of Sunday evening, one Red Cross shelter remained open for those without power in Josephine County. The warming shelter at Illinois Valley High School was left available while a second one in Grants Pass was closed down.