An armada of vehicles and dozens of personnel from Missouri electric power coops will lend a hand with restoration of power in areas hit by Hurricane Isaac.
The Association of Missouri Electric Cooperatives is waiting for the call from Dixie Electric Membership Corp based in Greenwell Springs, La., a suburb of Baton Rouge. Missouri’s electric cooperatives have organized a relief force of 146 linemen and 81 pieces of equipment from 30 electric cooperatives.
“We are waiting for a call from the Association of Louisiana Electric Cooperatives to go,” says Rob Land, who heads the emergency assistance program at the association. “The storm still hasn’t hit where they are at. It’s still in the gulf but is expected to hit this afternoon.”
Already Dixie Electric reports 27,000 of its members – a fourth of those served by the cooperative – are without power as strong winds and heavy rainfall batter the area.
If needed, crews from northern parts of Missouri will head south to Blytheville, Ark., where they will spend the night. On Friday, they will be joined by crews from southern Missouri electric cooperatives and should arrive in the hurricane zone sometime Friday, Aug. 31, ready to work.
Several of Missouri’s electric cooperatives were unable to respond to the call for help because they have all available workers working to wire wells drilled as part of Gov. Jay Nixon’s drought relief program.
“While we always prioritize helping other electric cooperatives and their members when disasters strike them and leave Missouri alone, we have to also prioritize getting needed water to our Missouri farmers affected by the drought, said Barry Hart, CEO of the Association of Missouri Electric Cooperatives.” All of the wells have to be completed by Sept. 23.”
Those systems sending assistance are:
Barry Electric, Cassville
Barton County Electric, Lamar
Black River Electric, Fredericktown
Boone Electric, Columbia
Callaway Electrric, Fulton
Central Missouri Electric, Sedalia
Citizens Electric, Ste. Genevieve
Co-Mo Electric, Tipton
Consolidated Electric, Mexico
Crawford Electric, Bourbon
Cuivre River Electric, Troy
Gascosage Electric, Dixon
Grundy Electric, Trenton
Howell-Oregon Electric, West Plains
Intercounty Electric, Licking
Laclede Electric, Lebanon
Lewis County Electric, Lewistown
Macon Electric, Macon
Osage Valley Electric, Butler
Pemiscot-Dunklin Electric, Hayti
Platte-Clay Electric, Kearney
Ralls County Electric, New London
Sac Osage Electric, El Dorado Springs
SEMO Electric, Sikeston
Tri-County Electric, Lancaster
United Electric, Maryville
Webster Electric , Marshfield
West Central Electric, Higginsville
White River Valley Electric, Branson
Northeast Missouri Electric Power Cooperative, Palmyra