Regional electric company crews in Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi have departed or preparing to depart for Florida and Georgia to assist with putting the lights back on after Hurricane Ian swamped the Sunshine State. A crew of 10 people and two bucket trucks departed from Fairhope, Ala., to Gainesville on Sept. 28. Riviera Utilities in Daphne will send 16 workers on Friday to Jacksonville. Alabama Power sent 400 to Savannah, Ga., on Sept. 29. Laura Stewart, education coordinator with the Alabama Rural Electric Association of Cooperatives made up of 18 entities is sending 130 electrical crewmen throughout Florida. Most utilities have prearranged mutual aid agreements to provide guidance where to send work crews following a disaster. The agreements are reciprocal. In September 2020, Gainsville crews responded to Daphne's needs following Hurricane Sally. Riviera crews arrived in Gainesville on Wednesday before the storm. Most Alabama crews are waiting for the now-downgraded tropical storm to leave the state. More than 2.6M Floridians are without power. Fairhope Utilities is part of the 36-member organization based in Montgomery. Jonathan Hand, executive director of Electric Cities of Alabama, said there are 13 utilities assisting in recovery efforts. The other Alabama utilities include Cullman, Huntsville, Dothan, Decatur, Troy, Sheffield, Tuskegee, Andalusia, the Electric Board of Guntersville, City of Florence and Opelika Power. (AL.com 09/29/22)
Mississippi's Pine Belt citizens and power crews are readying to hit the highway to lend a hand to Florida and Georgia. Mississippi Power is gearing up to send a 00-person unit to Georgia on Sept. 30. Seventy-five are line crew personnel. (The AP 09/27/22)
* Dixie Electric Power Association crew members from Jones County, Miss., left for Wauchula, Fla., on Sept. 29. (WDAM 09/29/22)
* Salvation Army Gulf Coast is providing personnel and volunteers to travel with the Texas Emergency Disaster Services Team to Fort Meyers and other areas in Florida. Non-perishables, water, and cleansing stations are stocked on trucks and vans going to Florida. The SAGC will have 10 canteens operating in Fort Meyers and 20 more working across the state. (WLOX 09/29/22)
Shreveport, La.-based Southwestern Electric Power sent 306 personnel -106 employees and 200 contractors - to Florida ahead of Hurricane Ian's landfall to assist Orlando utility companies in restoration efforts. (The AP 09/26/22)
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