Nebraska mutual aid groups help hurricane-ravaged state • Ne
LINCOLN — Nebraska has deployed an emergency response team dedicated to communications to help North Carolina deal with the effects of Hurricane Helene, Gov. Jim Pillen said Monday.
The four-member Telecommunications Emergency Response Team (TERT) departed for Buncombe County on Friday and are expected to return home in 14 days. The county was one of the hardest hit by the storm.
The Nebraska Telecommunications Emergency Response Team (TERT) has been mobilized to assist in response to Hurricane Helene. From left to right are deployed Mike Binder, Andrew Hayden, Cindy Howard, Kate Beard. Pictured is Sharon Codre, TERT State Chief Coordinator. (Courtesy of the Governor’s Office)
“The hurricane caused catastrophic damage to North Carolina’s communications systems and there is an urgent need for this team to provide dedicated 911 communications support to ensure public safety,” Pillen said in a press statement.
Living conditions in the area have been affected by power outages, flooding, debris, downed trees and patchy cellular coverage. The Nebraska team was housed in a gymnasium used to house other emergency responders and TERTs from elsewhere.
Nebraska’s TERT deployment is in response to requests received through the Emergency Management Assistance Compact, an interstate mutual aid agreement among all states designed to streamline the process of requesting disaster resources.
Elv Portis, assistant director of the Nebraska Emergency Management Agency, said the agency is monitoring requests from affected states.
“We are continuously communicating with these state and local partners to assess Nebraska’s ability to respond when these requests are received. We will take the same steps as Hurricane Milton approaches Florida in the coming days. .
Utility companies respond
Nebraska utilities, including the Omaha Public Power District and Lincoln Electric System, also sent crews to assist areas hit by the hurricane.
The 16-person OPPD team deployed to the Southeast on Sept. 28 to support Appalachian Power in West Virginia and Virginia was disbanded Monday from the massive power restoration effort.
Omaha Public Power District mutual aid team members Trey Mueller, front row, and Jeff Jensen work in Virginia. (Courtesy of OPPD)
But there are already people asking for OPPD’s help in preparing for the next storm.
“The next major storm, Hurricane Milton, is due to make landfall on Wednesday and will require additional help,” OPPD spokesperson Jodi Baker said. “The Orlando Public Utilities Commission has asked our teams if we can move forward. Our Mutual aid crews are now on the road heading into preparations ahead of the storm.
OPPD has twice provided mutual aid to utility companies in need before this year. The team supported Evergy in the Kansas City area in January and MidAmerican Energy in northern Iowa and ComEd in southern Illinois in mid-July after high winds caused extensive damage to trees and power lines.
When more than 220,000 customers lost power during the historic storm on July 31, all three utilities “returned the favor” by providing assistance to OPPD, a utility spokesman said.
Bucket trucks, excavators, pickup trucks
The LES team that deployed to Georgia on September 25 has returned home. Twelve LES employees joined six employees from Grand Island Utilities in Hurricane Helene recovery efforts.
The team carries two bucket trucks, two excavators/derricks, three pickup trucks, two trailers and a machinery truck.
“We learned first-hand the role mutual aid support can play as we dealt with the aftermath of Storm Lincoln on July 31, our first call for mutual aid support in nine years,” said Paul Crist, LES Vice President of Energy Delivery. The demands are high and resources are stretched thin, and LES is proud to be able to provide support to another community in need.”
LES said the American Public Power Association is helping coordinate aid efforts in the region. The association is composed of more than 2,000 community power companies across the country. As a member of the National Association’s Mutual Aid Network, LES can be reimbursed for all costs of deploying resources to assist other utilities.
A LES spokesman said the utility has not yet announced mutual aid efforts for Hurricane Milton, but noted that could change soon.
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