Today, Oncor deployed more than 100 employees and contractors to Tampa, Florida as part of a broader mutual assistance effort to preposition power restoration resources ahead of Hurricane Dorian’s arrival.

As part of this effort, Oncor repair and reconstruction resources supported by contract vegetation management and other personnel, will be working directly with local utility partners and local officials. All of the more than 100 Oncor employees and contractors volunteered to join the mutual assistance effort.

“Hurricane Dorian is still a few days out, but we know firsthand how much of a difference it can make to have critical restoration resources prepositioned closer to the potentially impacted areas before such a severe storm makes landfall. While we urge Floridians to be prepared, we also want them to know their Texas neighbors are on the way, and we will be ready to help restore power as quickly and safely as possible,” said Keith Hull, Vice President of Distribution Operations at Oncor. “This type of event is exactly why we have worked so hard to maintain mutual assistance partnerships across the country and we are honored to join our fellow electric utilities in providing this critical support.”

Meteorologists at the National Hurricane Center expect Hurricane Dorian to make landfall on the east coast of Florida early next week as a category 4 hurricane. Prepositioning personnel and resources closer to potentially affected areas ahead of the storm’s arrival will help Oncor crews quickly identify the areas of greatest need and begin restoration efforts as soon as weather conditions allow.  

Oncor maintains mutual assistance partnerships with numerous electric utilities throughout Texas and across the country. Mutual assistance partners work together year-round to prepare for and respond to severe weather and major outage events such as Hurricane Dorian.

Over the past few years, Oncor has deployed Company employees and equipment to support restoration efforts after the devastation of Hurricane Harvey in Houston, Hurricane Michael in Florida, Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico, and wildfires in California. Following the severe storms in June of this year, mutual assistance crews from 11 different states and across Texas deployed to the Dallas-Fort Worth area in support of Oncor’s restoration efforts.