While North Carolina has experienced one of the wettest winters on record, the state has mostly avoided the larger ice events our neighbors to the north have encountered. As a result, February has been a busy month for mutual aid for our members. Once again, our public power communities have stepped up to the plate and overdelivered on the mutual aid front.
In mid-February, a winter storm hit Virginia particularly hard, bringing snow and ice to many parts of the state. ElectriCities Associate Member Danville, VA had widespread damage and requested assistance which was answered by Apex, Rocky Mount, Statesville, and Tarboro. These North Carolina members all sent crews to Danville to support restoration efforts.
Check out more from APPA here: Public power crews from the Carolinas help Virginia’s Danville Utilities restore power | American Public Power Association
Blackstone, VA – another public power community in Virginia – was hit hard by the same storm and had their entire system taken down during the storm’s peak. Elizabeth City and Wake Forest responded to Blackstone’s aid, with an additional Rocky Mount crew transferring from Danville to Blackstone to lend a hand.
Then on February 17, a second winter storm hit the region before restoration work was complete in Virginia communities. While the storm was predicted to have major impacts on North Carolina, our neighbors to the north received the brunt of the storm. In preparation for the storm, Fayetteville PWC and New Bern offered crews to be pre-staged in High Point. ElectriCities also coordinated with South Carolina communities to meet additional pre-staging needs in Virginia.
We were also able to coordinate with Electric Cities of Georgia to help bring multiple crews from Georgia to provide additional assistance to co-ops in North Carolina – a great example of the strength of our mutual aid network.
All in all, North Carolina public power was fortunate in both storm events and did not see the ice accumulation predicted. Our gratitude and thanks to all North Carolina public power communities for their willingness to lend a hand and help our neighbors!