Florida Power & Light is targeting the end of the day Monday to restore power to 95% of customers impacted by Hurricane Isaias, with many restored sooner, the company announced Saturday night.
Crews have restored more than 98,000 customers across the Florida Panhandle since early Saturday morning, when tropical-storm-force winds exited the state, according to FPL.
“We understand how difficult it is to be without power, and we are committed to getting every customer’s lights back on as soon as possible,” said FPL President and CEO Scott Bores.
Outages in Okaloosa and Walton counties
In Okaloosa County, 44,740 FPL customers were without power as of Saturday evening, according to the company’s outage data. That is about 44% of the 101,550 customers FPL serves in the county.
FPL has restored 37,770 of the 82,510 Okaloosa customers affected by the storm.
In Walton County, 10,760 customers were without power and 11,190 had been restored, out of 21,950 affected.
Across the eight Panhandle counties listed in FPL’s data, 291,240 customers were without power and 107,180 had been restored:
| County | Out | Restored | Affected | Total served |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bay | 24,820 | 26,180 | 51,000 | 119,730 |
| Escambia | 122,830 | 23,930 | 146,760 | 168,860 |
| Holmes | 2,150 | 230 | 2,380 | 2,670 |
| Jackson | 540 | 60 | 600 | 1,370 |
| Okaloosa | 44,740 | 37,770 | 82,510 | 101,550 |
| Santa Rosa | 78,590 | 7,730 | 86,320 | 86,320 |
| Walton | 10,760 | 11,190 | 21,950 | 28,330 |
| Washington | 6,810 | 90 | 6,900 | 7,270 |
What is slowing restoration
High winds, heavy rain and significant storm surge caused extensive damage in some of the hardest-hit communities, according to FPL. Fallen trees and debris are limiting access in some areas and making restoration work more complex and time-consuming.
Some homes and businesses may have sustained damage that makes them unable to safely accept power. Those customers must contact a licensed electrician to make repairs before FPL can safely restore their power, the company said.
The restoration effort
FPL said its restoration workforce includes more than 16,000 people from 29 states working across the affected region. Crews are working through the night.
According to the company, the effort also includes:
- 16 staging, processing and parking sites to move crews, equipment and resources.
- 19 outage relief sites providing ice, water and answers to restoration-related questions.
- Damage assessment teams and drone flights providing aerial views of damage.
- Coordination with local emergency management officials to clear roads for lineworkers.
If you don’t see FPL trucks
Not seeing an FPL-branded truck does not mean crews are not working to restore power in an area, according to the company. Some crews brought in from other states may be in contractor or other utility vehicles.
Restoration work also happens throughout the electric grid and not only in front of the homes or businesses experiencing an outage. Crews may be working at a substation, along a main power line or at another location that must be repaired before power can be restored farther down the line, FPL said.
A crew that drives through an area without stopping may be headed to another location where repairs must be completed first.
What customers should do
FPL said it knows where power is out immediately after a storm, so there is no need to contact the company to report an outage. The company also advised customers to:
- Treat an intersection with a non-working traffic signal as a four-way stop, as Florida law requires.
- Never operate a generator inside a home or garage, and follow the manufacturer’s recommendations.
- Stay far away from downed power lines, flooding and debris, and assume that lines are energized.
- Call 911 in an emergency.
- Report a downed power line or sparking electrical equipment to FPL at 1-800-4-OUTAGE (1-800-468-8243).
One Response
You are telling me that there are only 1300 or so customers still without power? In bay county?