Customer Newsletter, July 2008
Weather Causes Outages, and Challenges for the District and Its Customers
It seems as though every corner of our service area has endured more than its share of rough weather during the past month. We’ve seen it all--wind, rain, hail, flooding and tornadoes. One of our hardest hit areas through the stretch of turbulent weather was located just to the south of Aurora. Many of our customers were affected either by a tornado that moved through the area, or high winds related to that storm on Thursday, May 29th. Initially, about 1,000 customers lost power, and by the end of Friday, 200 of those customers remained without power until the following Sunday. The storm caused damages to our facilities amounting to 2-1/4 miles of subtransmission line, 6 miles of distribution line and another 5 miles of line in need of minor repairs. To respond to the immediate need for more manpower, Southern dispatched men from other service areas to assist our Central City crews. We were also joined by linemen from Perennial, Polk County and Loup Power Districts. In all, there were 50 additional linemen assisting with their effort, and they also brought along bucket trucks, diggers, and all the equipment for such an enormous job.
Nearly one week after the Aurora tornado, we faced another damage-inflicting storm. This time, we experienced a loss of facilities in Kearney and Adams County. Near Heartwell, 14 steel poles were damaged, and 15 subtransmission poles east of Hastings and another nine distribution poles. All of these damages were repaired by the second week in June.
Now that storm restoration has been completed, the District will shift its attention to the regular projects, including major upgrades in the Aurora area.
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Other stories you'll find inside this edition:
- Post Storm Caution
After a tornado, its common for people to be curious about storm damage, and drive country roads to see it first hand. More>>>
- Energy Wise Tip: Operate Your Appliances When Energy Demand is Low
How and when you use electric energy can make a difference. More>>>
- Summer Interns on Staff at SPD
Southern Power District will be employing interns throughout the summer, seven of whom are currently working toward being a lineman. More>>>
- Energy Camp is Back for 2008!
Southern has scheduled Bright Ideas Day Camp for Thursday, August 7th at Southern's Grand Island Service Center. More>>>
- Recipe Box: Herbed Hamburgers, submitted by customers Ned & Laura Nelson
Recipe>>>
