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Tri-County Doesn't Back Down From Tropical Storm Frances

>> Middle Georgians got a taste of just how fierce a tropical storm can be when Frances came through. On the morning  of September 7, close to 50 percent (roughly 10,000) of Tri-County's accounts lost power. Statewide, about 92,000 EMC members were without electricity.

As the storm advanced, high winds moving through our area caused an interruption of transmission service to four of Tri-County EMC's substations and about nine miles of power lines were down. EMC crew members and contracted teams from Pike Electric, Inc., including six additional contracted right-of-way and construction crews from other counties, worked day and night in the wind and rain to restore electric service.

On the morning of September 8, the number was down to 1,500 members without power. The following morning, only 200 members remained without power. Many of these outages were in remote areas or had substantial construction damage, resulting in longer outage times until service was restored. That evening, power was restored to all but around 25 members.  

As of press date, Tri-County prepares to face Hurricane Ivan and asks members to do the same for subsequent storms. Keep plenty of ice, water, nonperishable food, flashlights and candles on hand in case your power is out for awhile.

"If you lose power, we encourage you to call," says Communications Specialist Margaret Morris, "Once you have reported your outage, please be patient. Depending upon your location and damages, it could take some time to restore your  service."

Please alert Tri-County if you have a generator and use a double-throw transfer switch. <<