ST. PETERSBURG, Fla.,
July 7, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- As
Tropical Storm Elsa made landfall Wednesday along Florida's northwest coast, Duke Energy crews
quickly responded to restore damage and power outages.
Duke Energy strategically staged about 3,000 of its crew
members, contractors, tree specialists and other personnel from
Florida, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio and the Carolinas in advance of the
storm. With employees in multiple states, Duke Energy is able to
position company resources from other areas not in a storm's path
when severe weather strikes.
"We were ready for the worst-case scenario that could happen
when our customers are in the path of a hurricane or tropical
storm," said Todd Fountain, Duke
Energy Florida's storm director. "We are happy that this time the
conditions did not result in widespread outages. Still, we want
those customers whose service was affected to know we're working
hard for them."
At the peak of the storm on July 7
at 5 a.m., there were 7,345 customer
outages. Crews have also restored more than 28,000 storm
outages.
Duke Energy has released employees from the Carolinas who
traveled to Florida in advance of
the storm so they are available to assist with Elsa-related outages
in their home states. Employees from Indiana, Kentucky and Ohio will be released later today and prepare
to travel home tomorrow.
Safety reminders after the storm
- Stay away from power lines that have fallen or are sagging.
Consider all lines energized, as well as trees, limbs or anything
in contact with lines.
- Report all power line hazards using the following phone number:
800.228.8485.
- If a power line falls across a car that you're in, stay in the
car. If you MUST get out of the car due to a fire or other
immediate life-threatening situation, do your best to jump clear of
the car and land on both feet. Be sure that no part of your body is
touching the car when your feet touch the ground.
- Never bring a generator indoors. Generators should be operated
only outdoors, and only in well-ventilated areas. Manufacturer
instructions should be followed.
- If rising water threatens your home – or if you evacuate your
home – turn off your power at the circuit breaker panel or fuse
box.
- Electric current passes easily through water, so stay away from
downed power lines and electrical wires. Don't drive over – and
don't stand near – downed power lines. Downed lines will be hard to
see in the rain and can potentially be hidden in standing water. If
you encounter large pools of standing water, stop, back up and
choose another path.
Outage reporting
Customers who experience an outage can report it by:
- Visiting duke-energy.com on a desktop computer or mobile
device.
- Texting OUT to 57801 (standard text and data charges may
apply).
- Calling the automated outage-reporting system at
800.228.8485.
For storm or power restoration updates, follow Duke Energy on
Twitter (@DukeEnergy) and Facebook (Duke Energy).
New technology investments
In addition to year-round storm preparation, Duke Energy also is
investing in grid modernization. In 2020, smart, self-healing
technology helped to avoid nearly 290,000 extended customer outages
in Florida, saving around
18,900,000 outage minutes. This technology serves approximately 45%
of our Florida customers and we
expect that smart-thinking technologies will serve 80% or more of
customers when fully deployed by 2027.
Crews also trim trees and inspect power lines and poles
regularly. In many areas, they are replacing older poles with
newer, stronger poles: wood to steel and concrete and lattice
towers to monopoles.
Duke Energy Florida
Duke Energy Florida, a subsidiary of Duke Energy, owns a diverse
generation mix of natural gas, coal and renewables, providing about
10,200 megawatts of owned electric capacity to approximately 1.9
million customers in a 13,000-square-mile service area.
Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK), a Fortune 150 company headquartered in
Charlotte, N.C., is one of
America's largest energy holding companies. Its electric utilities
serve 7.9 million customers in North
Carolina, South Carolina,
Florida, Indiana, Ohio
and Kentucky, and collectively own
51,000 megawatts of energy capacity. Its natural gas unit serves
1.6 million customers in North
Carolina, South Carolina,
Tennessee, Ohio and Kentucky. The company employs 27,500
people.
Duke Energy is executing an aggressive clean energy strategy to
create a smarter energy future for its customers and communities –
with goals of at least a 50 percent carbon reduction by 2030 and
net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. The company is a top U.S.
renewable energy provider, on track to operate or purchase 16,000
megawatts of renewable energy capacity by 2025. The company also is
investing in major electric grid upgrades and expanded battery
storage, and exploring zero-emitting power generation technologies
such as hydrogen and advanced nuclear.
Duke Energy was named to Fortune's 2021 "World's Most Admired
Companies" list and Forbes' "America's Best Employers" list. More
information is available at duke-energy.com. The Duke Energy
News Center contains news releases, fact sheets, photos and
videos. Duke Energy's illumination features stories about
people, innovations, community topics and environmental issues.
Follow Duke Energy on Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and
Facebook.
###
Contact: Allison Barker
24-Hour: 800.559.3853
Cell: 304.553.9104
Twitter: @DE_AllisonB
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SOURCE Duke Energy