General

OPPD receives commendation for restoration work after hurricane

OPPD recently received a commendation from the American Public Power Association in recognition of mutual aid restoration work done in Orlando after Hurricane Milton.

OPPD is part of APPA’s mutual aid network, which coordinates with utilities and authorities during widespread power outages.

Sixteen OPPD employees spent three days in Orlando in October, working with the Orlando Utilities Commission (OUC) to help restore service to about 83,400 OUC customers.

“Mutual aid is at the heart of what public power does, and the public power community thanks you for stepping up to help a neighbor in need – whether they are next door or thousands of miles away,” wrote Scott Corwin, APPA president & CEO, in a letter to Distribution Services Manager Eli Schiessler.

Ernie Ross, crew supervisor for the mutual aid team, said the bond among public utilities is strong.

“When we respond to a request for assistance, the team members who volunteer to go understand what’s at stake, because we’ve been the recipient of that type of assistance,” Ross said.

“It was an honor and very humbling to be asked to help a neighbor in need. To be recognized for that affirms we did what needed to be done.”

Journey started in West Virginia

The mutual aid team’s work in Orlando capped off a 2½-week journey that started Sept. 28 when the team left to help Appalachian Power restore power in rural West Virginia following Hurricane Helene.

That hurricane left devastating damage across the southeast after making landfall in Florida on Sept. 26.  Nearly 4 million electric customers in the region lost power.

The treacherous terrain and complex repairs needed slowed the pace of restoration work, Ross said at the time. Simply accessing the remote areas was physically exhausting.

The team worked for a week in West Virginia and Virginia, before being asked by APPA to pre-stage in Orlando. Hurricane Milton made landfall on Oct. 9, and the team began restoration work once conditions were safe.

The team spent three days helping OUC customers. Fortunately, OUC’s service area had less damage and far fewer customers without power.

The following employees were on the team that responded to Hurricanes Helene and Milton:

Bryan Bernhards, senior safety tech specialist; Craig Bohannon, working line crew leader; Aaron Chessareck, line technician; Tyler Gjerdi, line technician; Travis Grell, line technician; Ivan Hofker, working line crew leader; Jeff Jensen, senior journeyman line technician; Jake Lang, working line crew leader; Travis Lynch, working line crew leader; Andrew Meyer, troubleshooter; Tanner Miner, transportation mechanic; Trey Mueller, line technician; Tony Rosentreader, transportation working crew leader; Ernie Ross, T&D field supervisor; Jason Strode, line technician; and Steve Young, working line crew leader.