Mutual assistance power army continues post-Helene restoration efforts

More than 50,000 workers from at least 41 states, the District of Columbia, and Canada continue work to restore power to customers and communities impacted by Hurricane Helene, according to the Edison Electric Institute (EEI), the association representing all U.S. investor-owned electric companies.

EEI reported that Helene had impacted a total of nearly 6 million customers in 10 states, and as of 9 a.m. EDT Friday, power had been restored to approximately 5.25 million — or 87.6 percent — of those customers. EEI also said that once damage assessments are complete in the hardest-hit communities, impacted electric companies will have a better understanding of the total number of customers who need to be “red-tagged” or removed from the outage count due to the homes or buildings having so much damage that they can’t receive power.

“It is heartbreaking to see the utter devastation Helene caused in so many communities, and we know that restoring electricity is critical to their recovery,” Dan Brouillette, president and CEO of EEI, said earlier this week. “Right now, the same challenges that are impeding search and rescue are also impeding restoration efforts. Crews will continue to work day and night to restore power and hope to the customers we are so privileged to serve.”

Mutual assistance among the nation’s power providers again has been successful in mitigating the aftermath challenges associated with Helene, which the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) says dumped 40 trillion gallons of rain — enough water to fill more than 600 million Olympic-sized swimming pools — in the 10 impacted states.

“We know how important it is for communities to recover quickly after a storm, which is why we continue to help those impacted by #Hurricane Helene,” Entergy Texas posted this morning on X. “Our team is currently in GA and VA, helping to turn the lights back on safely for our neighbors.”

The massive amounts of rain caused historic flooding, fallen trees and debris, and road and bridge closures, all of which continue to impede both power restoration efforts and search and rescue efforts in the hardest-hit areas. The more boots on the ground to help restore power, the better, say the utilities.

For instance, New Jersey’s Public Service Electric and Gas (PSE&G) has deployed approximately 90 lineworkers, safety professionals, mechanics and logistical support personnel to provide mutual aid to Southern Company, a gas and electric utility headquartered in Atlanta, with restoration of utility infrastructure damage caused by Hurricane Helene.

“After Superstorm Sandy, Southern Company was one of the many utilities that came to our aid. Utilities from as far away as New Mexico, Florida, and the Province of Quebec provided 4,500 lineworkers and support personnel during our time of need,” said PSE&G’s John Latka, senior vice president of electric transmission and distribution. “We know the importance of getting the lights back on for customers and feel fortunate when we are able to assist.”

The PSE&G crews are expected to arrive in Georgia this afternoon and are prepared for a two-week deployment or until their help is no longer needed, the company said in a post this morning.

In the Carolinas, more than 21,000 workers continue to make progress restoring power to Duke Energy’s customers following Helene’s catastrophic damage, though major challenges remain.

The hurricane damaged a significant portion of the electric system in the North Carolina mountains and upstate South Carolina, including transmission towers, substations, utility poles, power lines, and other major equipment. In some areas where power outages remain, floods have destroyed roads and bridges, Duke Energy said.

“We continue to work with a variety of stakeholders to get critical assets — like our vehicles, workers, poles, transformers, wire, and more — to the areas where we are restoring power for our customers,” said Jason Hollifield, Duke Energy’s storm director for the Carolinas. “We know partnerships and collaboration with local, state and federal agencies are critical — and will continue to be — as we collaborate with these communities to rebuild.”

Duke Energy posted this morning that restoration continues in the hardest hit areas. In upstate South Carolina alone, about 6,000 poles and 30,000 pole-to-pole spans of primary wire are damaged, according to Duke’s Senior Construction Manager Marcus Hubbard.

With catastrophic damage across western South Carolina in the wake of Helene, thousands of Dominion Energy employees and contractors also keep working on restoring power in the other hardest-hit areas of the state.

More than 90 percent of Dominion Energy’s customers in the western region were without power as the storm exited South Carolina. As of 10 a.m. EDT Thursday, power was restored to more than 45 percent of those customers impacted in the western region, the company reported.

“Dedicated crews worked tirelessly through the night again and will continue to make progress on restoring service to our roughly ~35,000 customers that are still without power as of 8 a.m. Friday morning,” Dominion Energy said in a post earlier today.

The company also said that crews are clearing thousands of trees and setting hundreds of new poles to restore power in the region, while extensive damage assessment continues, including aerial patrols in rural, heavily wooded areas where access is extremely limited.

Approximately 4,000 Dominion Energy employees and additional out-of-state crews are working nonstop in South Carolina, representing one field worker for approximately every 30 customers without power, the company said.

“An unprecedented catastrophe calls for an unprecedented response from Team South Carolina,” said Keller Kissam, president of Dominion Energy South Carolina. “Even though we have made progress restoring main lines and substations, there is still a massive amount of work ahead in this most devastated part of our state.”

And while Dominion was strategically positioned ahead of the storm and has utilized the best available technology, Kissam said that no amount of preparation or technology can replace the sheer number of intensive hours and manual labor required to put the system back together.

“We will not rest until every last South Carolinian has been returned to the light,” he added.

Thus far, more than 393,000 Dominion Energy customers have been restored statewide, representing nearly 90 percent of those impacted across its service territory. The company estimates work will continue through next week.

Also Friday, Appalachian Power crews are restoring power and rebuilding roads in remote, storm-ravaged areas.

A workforce of 7,300 is battling impacted terrain and damaged infrastructure to clear debris, reconstruct access routes, and repair downed lines to ensure isolated communities in southwest Virginia and southern West Virginia get reconnected after days without electric service, the company said.

As of 9:15 a.m. EDT Oct. 4, more than 95 percent of affected customers, or 268,000 customers, have been restored, said Appalachian Power, adding that with assessments nearly complete, crews have found extensive damage to the grid, with nearly 200 miles of fallen wire to replace, more than 1,000 poles to rebuild, and hundreds of damaged transformers.

At the same time, less than 900 unique locations across southern Virginia and southern West Virginia need repairs, said Appalachian Power, which reported that about 10,000 affected customers are in Virginia, and 3,000 are without service in West Virginia.

Appalachian Power’s 7,360 employees and contractors remain dedicated to storm restoration work, including mutual assistance crews from 30 states as far as Nebraska, the company said.

Meanwhile, Georgia Power has restored power to more than 1.2 million customers following Hurricane Helene, with more than 90 percent of all customers being impacted by what the company says is the most destructive hurricane in its history.

Progress is ongoing and the company expects to reach 95 percent total restoration by Oct. 5.

“As our Helene restoration efforts continue across the state, our crews are continuing to work through devastated areas using every method possible,” Georgia Power posted last night. “In some cases we have to use boats and helicopters to access transmission lines and damaged infrastructure.”

More than 20,000 personnel remain engaged in the company’s response, and over the last few days, the company reported that efforts have further intensified to repair damage and restore service in the hardest hit areas with crews converging on communities across coastal, eastern, and southern Georgia.

In many cases, the damage to Georgia Power’s infrastructure is so severe that teams are essentially rebuilding parts of the grid and not just repairing specific elements.

As of Oct. 3, the company provided updated damage estimates illustrating the extensive destruction caused by Hurricane Helene: More than 8,300 power poles must be repaired or replaced; over 21,000 spans of wire are damaged, equivalent to approximately 1,000 miles; roughly 1,600 transformers are damaged; and more than 3,200 trees on power lines must be removed or addressed to restore power.

Duke Energy Florida also continues with power restoration in areas hardest hit by the storm, including Pinellas County’s barrier islands. The company estimates that remaining restoration will be completed today for most customers, and by 11:59 p.m. on Oct. 5 for other customers.

“We will continue to be easily accessible and maintain an open line of communication with our customers even after their power is restored,” said Duke Energy Florida State President Melissa Seixas. “After such extensive destruction, many communities face a lengthy and trying recovery process, but we are here to help and will be with them every step of the way.”

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