ATLANTA, Jan. 8, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The Edison Electric
Institute (EEI) today presented Georgia Power with the
association's "Emergency Recovery Award" for its power
restoration efforts after 14 tornadoes hit Georgia in March
2019.
The Emergency Recovery Award is given to select EEI member
companies to recognize their efforts to restore power to customers
after service disruptions caused by severe weather conditions or
other natural events. The winners are chosen by a panel of judges
following an international nomination process. Georgia Power
received the award during EEI's Winter
Board and Chief Executives Meeting.
"It is an honor to once again receive EEI's Emergency Recovery
Award recognizing Georgia Power's dedication to serving our
customers following natural disasters like last year's tornado
outbreak," said Paul Bowers, chairman, president and CEO of
Georgia Power. "This award recognizes that when storms strike, the
men and women from Georgia Power and assisting utilities will work
tirelessly to restore power as safely and quickly as possible."
Georgia Power estimates that damage from the March tornado
outbreak included:
- Approximately 100 broken or damaged power poles
- More than 16 miles of downed wire
- Approximately 19,000 sustained outages at response peak
The EF4 tornado that struck Georgia's Muscogee, Talbot and Harris counties devastated communities and
caused significant damage to Georgia Power's system. More than 600
personnel were mobilized as part of the company's restoration
effort, including support from other Southern Company operating
companies. Responding personnel dedicated over 20,000 hours to the
restoration, and service was safely restored to nearly all impacted
customers three days after the storm.
"Georgia Power's work to restore service safely and quickly to
customers, often in dangerous conditions, makes them deserving of
this award," said EEI President Tom
Kuhn. "Their efforts exemplify the high standards our
industry seeks to uphold, and I applaud their commitment to their
customers."
Georgia Power has earned the Emergency Recovery Award eight
times including as recently as 2019.
About Georgia Power
Georgia Power is the largest
electric subsidiary of Southern Company (NYSE: SO), America's
premier energy company. Value, Reliability, Customer Service and
Stewardship are the cornerstones of the company's promise to 2.6
million customers in all but four of Georgia's 159 counties. Committed to
delivering clean, safe, reliable and affordable energy at rates
below the national average, Georgia Power maintains a diverse,
innovative generation mix that includes nuclear, coal and natural
gas, as well as renewables such as solar, hydroelectric and wind.
Georgia Power focuses on delivering world-class service to its
customers every day and the company is consistently recognized by
J.D. Power and Associates as an industry leader in customer
satisfaction. For more information, visit www.GeorgiaPower.com and
connect with the company on Facebook (Facebook.com/GeorgiaPower),
Twitter (Twitter.com/GeorgiaPower) and Instagram
(Instagram.com/ga_power).
The Edison Electric Institute (EEI)
EEI is the
association that represents all U.S. investor-owned electric
companies. Our members provide electricity for more than 220
million Americans, and operate in all 50 states and the
District of Columbia. As a whole,
the electric power industry supports more than 7 million jobs in
communities across the United
States. In addition to our U.S. members, EEI has more than
65 international electric companies, with operations in more than
90 countries, as International Members, and hundreds of industry
suppliers and related organizations as Associate Members.
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SOURCE Georgia Power