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LOUIS HAUAfter working long days to restore electricity in Charley's wake, companies brace for more problems with Frances.
After completing the herculean task of restoring power to about 2-million customers in the wake of Hurricane Charley, Florida's electric utilities face the daunting prospect of having to do it all over again because of the approach of Hurricane Frances.
With Frances expected to make landfall sometime this weekend, utilities are scrambling to remobilize their forces to prepare for their second serious storm in a matter of weeks.
"We're kind of incredulous that we would get two storms of this magnitude," said Bill Swank, a spokesman for Florida Power & Light of Juno Beach, which serves most of the state's Atlantic coast. "Obviously it's very disappointing that we don't have time to get back to a degree of normalcy for a while."
Representatives for FPL, Progress Energy Florida of St. Petersburg and Tampa Electric Co. said they have contacted out-of-state utilities for assistance and have ordered additional supplies, such as replacement poles, transformers and miles of wiring.
Cherie Jacobs, a spokeswoman for Progress Energy Florida, said the utility's linemen are prepared for another go-around, if needed.
"They're resilient, they're ready to go," she said.
Still, with some line crews having worked 16-hour days for days after Charley, utilities said they will be re-emphasizing the need for employees to observe all safety measures as they repair power lines. Fatigue can be dangerous.
"We've maintained a zero (accident) rate" after Charley, Tampa Electric spokesman Ross Bannister said. "We just want to make sure we remain alert."
Pike Electric, a Mount Airy, N.C., contractor that had 2,400 line personnel assisting in the post-Charley recovery effort, still has some linemen who weren't expected to return home until today, according to vice president and chief administrative officer Barny Ratliff.
"This is a major event for our company," Ratliff said. "It's not unusual to respond to two storms like this in one year, but it is unusual to response to them back to back."
The prospect of cleaning up after another hurricane further raises the possibility of electric rate hikes later to pay for the recovery.
All of Florida's investor-owned utilities have storm reserve funds they are allowed to collect through monthly rates to cover storm recovery costs. If their costs exceed what they have in reserve, the utilities can ask the Public Service Commission for permission to add a surcharge to their customers' bills to make up the difference.
Florida Power & Light, whose reserve fund totals $340-million, and Tampa Electric, at $40-million, said their reserve funds will be more than enough to pay for Charley-related repairs, while Progress Energy, at $40.9-million, hasn't yet calculated whether its reserve fund will suffice.
Louis Hau can be reached at 813 226-3404 or hau@sptimes.com