The hurricanes down south in recent weeks have reminded everyone of the destructive power of the elements, and Indiana Michigan Power wants customers to know that’s something it’s always preparing for.
I&M spokesperson Kara Stevenson tells us the company regularly does Incident Command System exercises to simulate an actual severe weather emergency.
“So if it’s a large-scale outage, if it’s outside situations or incidents that might come up within a storm, but the goal is to practice now so when and if these situations do come up, we’re fully prepared,” Stevenson said.
Stevenson says the entire company comes together for the drills with each team having its own role.
“So these are drills that we do. We do them twice annually, and basically, we bring together our team from all over Indiana and Michigan so we’re all together in one location. So we’re able to have that face-to-face interaction with each other so we can problem-solve together.”
Stevenson says customers can also do their part by also being prepared. I&M advises everyone to always have plenty of batteries and flashlights in the home, have an emergency kit, and to have an emergency plan worked out with the family.
Meanwhile, I&M notes it now has 479 employees and contractors joining Hurricane Milton restoration efforts to help Tampa Electric and Florida Power and Light restore their customers. The crews will be working 16-hour shifts until they’ve gotten everyone down in Florida back online.
