With Florida in the path of Hurricane Isaias, Duke Energy Florida is preparing for potential outages and is encouraging customers to do the same.
Hurricane Isaias is forecast to bring strong winds, heavy rainfall and the potential for flooding to portions of Florida. Duke Energy customers in Central and Eastern Florida may experience weather-related outages.
“We understand now more than ever that our customers are depending upon us to provide safe and reliable power,” said Jason Cutliffe, Duke Energy’s storm director for Florida. “With COVID-19, customers are spending more time at home and even brief outages can be concerning.
“Our team is ready to respond as quickly and safely as possible to minimize the effects to our customers. We’ll also adjust our plans in the event the path of the storm shifts or changes.”
During non-pandemic times, restoring power after a storm can be difficult for utility repair crews, as travel and work conditions can be affected by high winds and widespread flooding. In addition to these concerns, Duke Energy’s detailed storm response plan has incorporated recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for COVID-19 compliance and social distancing measures to help keep customers and communities safe.
Crews will wear face coverings when the job allows and have modified work practices to reduce interactions. Customers are asked to remain outside of marked work zones and refrain from approaching crews working to restore outages during storms.
