- Approximately 904,000 customers, primarily in the S.C. Upstate
and N.C. Mountains, remain without power as of 6 p.m.
- Nearly all customers outside of the S.C. Upstate and N.C.
mountain regions should have power restored by tonight
- Damage assessments in the hardest-hit areas in both South and
North Carolina show many areas
where the power system is destroyed and must be completely rebuilt
before service is restored by Friday
CHARLOTTE, N.C., Sept. 29,
2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Duke Energy restored power to
more than 1.1 million Carolinas customers impacted by Helene, less
than 48 hours after the storm devastated parts of the region. About
904,000 customers – 508,000 in South
Carolina and 396,000 in North
Carolina – remain without power. Nearly all these outages
are in the western portions of each state.
Nearly all customers outside of upstate South Carolina and western North Carolina should have power restored at
some point today. Restoring service to the majority customers in
the upstate of South Carolina and
the North Carolina mountains is
expected by Friday, except for areas that are inaccessible, are
dependent on infrastructure that has been destroyed or are unable
to receive service.
As crews continue to assess the situation, updates will be
provided to customers regarding the status of their power
restoration. These are continually updated and can be found on Duke
Energy's Outage Maps tool. Customers also can enroll
in Outage Alerts to get information about area outages
and restoration efforts via text message, voice message or
email.
"Based on what we can see on the ground, from helicopter and by
drone, there are lots of areas across the South Carolina Upstate
and North Carolina mountains where
we're going to have to completely rebuild parts of our system, not
just repair it," said Jason
Hollifield, Duke Energy storm director for the Carolinas.
"And there are stretches of damage that we still can't even assess
due to mudslides, flooding and blocked roads.
"Our teams of lineworkers and other storm responders will
continue to work with local and state officials to gain access to
the hardest-hit areas so we can do what our customers and
communities expect from us – safely and swiftly get their power up
and running."
Workforce and restoration updates
Duke Energy strategically positioned lineworkers, tree trimmers and
other storm support prior to Helene – and they started responding
before the storm even left the region. The company now has 18,000
people working on storm restoration efforts across the Carolinas.
These include Duke Energy employees and contractors based in the
Carolinas as well as individuals from other electric companies
across the United States and
Canada.
As of 6 p.m. Sunday, Duke Energy
has restored power to more than 1.1 million Carolinas customers
impacted by Helene. This includes more than almost 328,000 in
South Carolina and 803,000
customers in North Carolina.
Approximately 904,000 customers – 508,000 in South Carolina and 396,000 in North Carolina – remain without power. Nearly
all these outages are in the western portions of each state.
South Carolina restoration
updates
Transmission infrastructure in Upstate South
Carolina, which sends electricity to the distribution lines serving
homes and businesses, was severely damaged and, in many cases,
destroyed by wind, flooding, fallen trees, and more. Duke Energy is
working to repair and rebuild this infrastructure to restore
service as quickly and safely as possible.
Duke Energy continues working with state local officials to
reach areas where accessibility has been a challenge. Crews are
using every resource available – including helicopters, drones and
track vehicles – to assess damages and continue restoration.
Grid integrity remained stable throughout the storm, so Duke
Energy is ready to continue bringing power back on quickly as
damaged and destroyed transmission infrastructure is repaired and
restored.
North Carolina restoration
updates
Damages to Duke Energy's infrastructure have been
severe, including submerged substations, thousands of downed
utility poles, and downed transmission towers. Many areas of the
North Carolina mountains are
inaccessible due to mudslides, flooding and blocked roads, limiting
the ability to assess and begin repairing damages. As floodwaters
continue to recede and crews can reach additional areas, they will
evaluate, repair and rebuild damaged infrastructure and restore
additional customers as quickly as possible.
Duke Energy is maintaining its focus on restoring power in a
sequence that enables power restoration to public health and safety
facilities and to the greatest number of customers as safely and
quickly as possible. Crews worked in partnership with local and
state emergency response agencies to assess damage and restore
power to Mission Hospital in Asheville,
N.C.
The company serves more than 4.5 million customers in the
Carolinas, including 3.7 million in North
Carolina and 835,500 in South
Carolina.
Limited access to extensive damage
The storm destroyed numerous electric transmission and distribution
facilities, including substations, poles, power lines and other key
system components. All of these have been or will need to be
replaced, repaired or rebuilt before power can be restored to
individual homes and businesses.
Power restoration work in the hardest-hit areas is projected to
take several days or longer. Many areas in communities without
power remain inaccessible to utility crews due to closed or blocked
roadways, downed trees and mudslides.
Power restoration process
Duke Energy focuses
on restoring power as safely and quickly as possible and
in a sequence that begins with public health and safety facilities,
while also considering how to impact the greatest number of
customers.
There may be times workers must temporarily deenergize power
lines during the repair process in order to get all customers in an
area restored.
Visit duke-energy.com/Outages/Restoring-Your-Power to
learn more about how Duke Energy restores power after major
storms.
Flood and meter box damage
Duke Energy cannot reconnect power for customers whose home or
business is flooded until the electrical system passes inspection
by a licensed electrician. If there is damage, an electrician will
need to make repairs and obtain verification from the local
building inspection authority before power can be restored.
A property owner with a damaged meter box or one that is pulled
away from the structure will need to enlist an electrician to
reattach the meter box and/or provide a permanent fix. This is
inclusive of customers currently with and without power. In some
instances, an electrical inspection may be required by the county
before Duke Energy can reconnect service. An electrician can advise
customers on next steps.
Generator safety
Customers using power generators should turn off generators if they
see utility crews in the area. Excess electricity created by a
generator can feed back onto electric lines and lead to severe
injuries to line technicians. Additional generator safety
information is available
at duke-energy.com/outages/generators.
Catawba-Wateree River Basin update
Duke Energy's lakes along the upper and middle Catawba River have
reached their highest point and will slowly decline over the next
several days. A few lakes near the lower part of the Catawba River
may continue to rise, resulting in flooding.
Duke Energy will continue to carefully control flows through our
river basins over the next several days. Lake levels will be
adjusted lower during this time as they move toward normal lake
level targets.
Duke Energy
Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK), a Fortune 150
company headquartered in Charlotte,
N.C., is one of America's largest energy holding companies.
The company's electric utilities serve 8.4 million customers in
North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Ohio
and Kentucky, and collectively own
54,800 megawatts of energy capacity. Its natural gas utilities
serve 1.7 million customers in North
Carolina, South Carolina,
Tennessee, Ohio and Kentucky.
Duke Energy is executing an ambitious clean energy transition,
keeping reliability, affordability and accessibility at the
forefront as the company works toward net-zero methane emissions
from its natural gas business by 2030 and net-zero carbon emissions
from electricity generation by 2050. The company is investing in
major electric grid upgrades and cleaner generation, including
expanded energy storage, renewables, natural gas and nuclear.
More information is available at duke-energy.com and the Duke
Energy News Center. Follow Duke Energy
on X, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook, and visit illumination for
stories about the people and innovations powering our energy
transition.
CONTACT: 24-Hour: 800.559.3853
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SOURCE Duke Energy