Hurricane Beryl made landfall early Monday morning near Matagorda, Texas, causing severe damage to homes, business and infrastructure, and widespread power outages. As part of its severe weather preparations, Georgia Power creates mutual agreements with other utilities to send and receive help when natural disasters strike.
Monday night, Georgia Power sent a team of more than 50 company personnel and contract teams to assist Texas-New Mexico Power in its recovery efforts. Georgia Power’s restoration workforce includes line crews, engineers, safety and support personnel from around the state.
Georgia Power is a member of the mutual assistance network, which consists of utilities from around the country. As part of this partnership, Georgia Power is able to respond and offer assistance, providing reinforcements when needed to restore power quickly for other utilities. The company is also able to tap into this mutual assistance network if additional resources are needed to help restore power to Georgia Power customers following a major storm. During Hurricanes Michael and Irma, Georgia Power received assistance from other utilities.
“We are proud of our crews who enthusiastically head into difficult conditions to restore power for those impacted by this devastating hurricane,” said Storm Center Manager Jason Stott. “With each request for assistance from other states, the company ensures that it has sufficient coverage to respond to potential local service interruptions at home.”
Stott added: “Above all else, safety is our top value. Just as we are prepared, we encourage our customers to have an emergency plan this hurricane season that helps their families stay safe and be ready for storms. Georgia Power teams remain prepared to respond to service interruptions that might occur because of severe weather and continually monitors the weather for potential impacts.”