POWERGRAMS

22 COMMUNITY he said. "You've got to remember that the transmission lines came across this river. We had to get that back in place. All these lines were in the river. They did a great job." At the height of the storm, more than 2,200 customers were affected by outages in the Wetumpka area. Statewide, more than 43,000 Alabama Power customers had outages from the storm system that spawned the tornado. "We were very lucky to have so many people step up and do what needed to be done without being told," said Kristi Stewart, engineering supervisor at Wetumpka Crew Headquarters. "Their quick response time allowed us to get a first glance at the damage before the area got so congested you couldn't get in. Everyone pulled together and within a few hours we had help from every crew in Southern Division, including transmission, either on site or on the way." Nine Alabama Power and 10 contract crews completed the power restorations, which included replacing about 60 broken poles and two crossings over the Coosa River. "The whole group kept great attitudes as they worked through the night while the temperature steadily dropped and working conditions continued to get worse," Stewart said. "Seeing tragedy of that magnitude in your backyard really made everyone want to do their part to help get the rebuilding process underway." COMPANY EARNS EEI AWARDS FOR 2018 EFFORTS A week before the Wetumpka storm, Alabama Power learned of its latest honor from the Edison Electric Institute for work following storms in 2018. The Emergency Recovery Award was bestowed for two events: the EF3 tornado that caused significant damage to Jacksonville State University and surrounding areas in March and a rare "derecho" storm with widespread 60 mph winds in June. The Jacksonville storm resulted in 31,000 outages, while the derecho event extended hundreds of miles statewide and caused 230,000 outages. "I'm extremely proud of the performance of our employees when so many of our customers are impacted by these types of storms," said Scott Moore, senior vice president for Power Delivery. "Our teams are to be commended not only for these two events, but for their consistent performance time and again to get the lights back on so quickly for our customers." The Emergency Recovery Award is given to EEI-member companies to recognize extraordinary efforts to restore power to customers after service disruptions caused by severe weather conditions and natural events. Winners are chosen by a panel of judges following an international nomination process. "The dedication of Alabama Power's crews to restore service throughout Alabama after severe weather, tornadoes and a derecho wind event illustrates our industry's commitment to customers," said EEI President Tom Kuhn. "Alabama Power's crews worked tirelessly in hazardous conditions to quickly and safely restore power. They are truly deserving of this award." EEI represents all U.S. investor- owned electric companies, which combined provide power to 220 million Americans. EEI has more than 65 international electric companies as members and hundreds of industry suppliers and related organizations as associate members. by Justin Averette Photos by Justin Averette and Jason McDade Alabama Power crews quickly responded to disaster. Wetumpka resident removes a tree limb.

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