Jefferson Energy restores power to all its customers affected by storm
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- Communication: When Comcast expects to restore service across CSRA
- Schools: Helene debris spurs changes in Richmond County bus routes
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - Jefferson Energy said Thursday morning it had restored power to all its customers whose service was knocked out by Hurricane Helene on Sept. 27.
To accomplish the task, the electric cooperative welcomed more than 1,200 additional employees to its team.
“As crews start their journey back home, our remaining employees will continue the vital work of maintaining the nearly 4,000 miles of line damaged by the storm,” Jefferson said. “This extensive process will take several months to complete.”
Some have been temporarily disconnected to allow for repairs to their personal property. Crews are still working to reconnect these as repairs are made
The nonprofit co-op serves 36,878 customers in parts of Richmond County and a swath of rural areas and smaller communities in the CSRA.
I-TEAM: Some say FEMA aid isn’t coming fast enough
More than two weeks after Hurricane Helene, some people are still waiting for FEMA to approve their applications.
It took a little longer for Jefferson to restore power than it did for Georgia Power, which reached that level of restoration a few days ago.
But co-ops face a different set of circumstances than large companies like Georgia Power.
Georgia Electric hip Corp. noted that:
- Several co-ops are rebuilding as much as 100% of their distribution system, while others are repairing and replacing significant portions of their network.
- The affected co-ops serve enormous land areas and have far fewer per mile of line (an average of five) compared with investor-owned utilities (average of 34) and publicly owned utilities, or municipal, (with an average of 48, nearly five times that of an electric co-op).
- Co-ops reported historically high numbers of downed trees and power poles, suring previous records. Linemen had to replace thousands of broken poles, which requires as much as four hours per pole in ideal working conditions
FEMA application denied? Here are the most common reasons
As communities clean up damage in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, officials are explaining why some residents may be told they are ineligible for disaster assistance.
The situation was similar across the Savannah River in South Carolina, where some customers of co-ops like Aiken Electric were expecting a long wait,
However, as of Wednesday morning, Aiken Electric showed only eight customers without power.
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