Entergy is sending an initial wave of more than 820 restoration workers to support a safe restoration effort in anticipation of widespread damage from Hurricane Ian, including vegetation and line crews.
According to the National Hurricane Center, Hurricane Ian is expected to make landfall on the west coast of central Florida as a major hurricane early morning Thursday, currently posing the highest risk from Fort Myers to the Tampa Bay region. Ian’s hurricane-force winds will likely cause life-threatening storm surge, flooding and significant damage to areas hit the hardest.
“Lending a helping hand during a natural disaster is what we do. We mobilize crews to support our friends and neighbors throughout the country, just as so many other utilities have done for us over the years, most recently with hurricanes Laura and Ida,” said James Wood, senior manager of incident response.
Sending crews to help is part of a long-standing mutual assistance agreement by which utilities support one another in times of need. When requested by a utility company, Entergy will send as many workers as they can spare while keeping enough at home to meet the day-to-day needs of Entergy customers.
Wood continued, “As with every storm response, our crews work as safely and quickly as they can to restore power after severe weather strikes. We remain storm-ready should additional resources be needed, and we’re eager to get to work safely restoring power to those impacted by Ian’s path.”
Hurricane Ian is expected to bring heavy rainfall and flooding across the Florida Keys and South Florida, then move into central and northern Florida in the following days. For the latest updates on Hurricane Ian, visit nhc.noaa.gov. Customers impacted by Hurricane Ian should place their safety first and follow local emergency plans that have been established by state and local government.
