Utilities coordinate linemen placement as winter weather threatens Kentucky
Power companies across Kentucky are making preparations ahead of a projected snowstorm expected to impact the state this weekend.
LEXINGTON, Ky. (WKYT) — Utility providers statewide are coordinating plans to determine where linemen should be positioned in advance of the approaching winter weather.
Kentucky Electric Cooperative and Kentucky Utilities said they are communicating with partners to strategically place crews in order to maintain service and restore power quickly if outages occur.
Joe Arnold with Kentucky Electric Cooperative said the organization has been in contact with electric cooperatives across Kentucky and neighboring states.
“Our co-ops have been in contact with each other as well as co-ops from other states to try to get a gauge of what we think here,” Arnold said.
Arnold added that utilities cannot yet commit to specific response plans because forecasts could still change.
“Right now no one can commit to any request to respond in advance because you don’t know how this forecast is going to be applied to reality and how it might shift in the next 48 to 72 hours,” he said.
Rural areas face challenges
Kentucky Electric Cooperative supports 24 local distribution cooperatives statewide, including Clark Energy and Jackson Energy. Those cooperatives serve about 1.8 million consumer members, many of whom live in rural areas that can be harder to reach during winter storms.
“Co-ops serve the last mile, which means the most remote areas that are often difficult to access even on a blue-sky day and much more difficult on a storm day,” Arnold said.
Kentucky Utilities serves roughly 500,000 customers across 77 counties. KU spokesperson Daniel Lowry said the company has personnel and equipment ready to respond.
“With our line technicians, contractors, and business partners, we have about 500 line technicians and support personnel,” Lowry said.
“We have more than 40 crew centers across our service territory, and they are staffed with equipment and crews ready to respond,” he said.
Arnold encouraged residents to prepare emergency kits with batteries, flashlights, and non-perishable food in case of power outages.
He also said he is hoping for lighter, powdery snow rather than heavy, wet snow, which can accumulate on power lines and increase the risk of outages.
Leave a Comment