Milton

Industry Leads Rebuild and Recovery Following Hurricane Milton

October 14, 2024
3 p.m. EDT

Hurricane Milton barreled across the Florida peninsula last week as a strong Category 3 storm, nearly two weeks after Hurricane Helene caused catastrophic damage across Florida and much of the southeastern United States. Milton caused dangerous storm surge, severe winds, heavy rain, significant inland flooding, and at least 38 confirmed tornadoes.

Numbers to Know

Prior to the storm, electric companies in the path of Milton strategically pre-positioned equipment, resources, and an army of more than 50,000 workers from at least 43 states, the District of Columbia, and Canada to assist in their storm response and restoration efforts.
The highest number of customers without power at one time in Florida was approximately 3.4 million* on Thursday, October 10.
Significant restoration progress is being made where it is safe to do so. As of 3 p.m. EDT, approximately 342,574 electricity customers were without power as a result of Milton, down nearly 90 percent from Thursday's peak.*

On Friday afternoon, President Joe Biden discussed the ongoing power restoration and response efforts, highlighting the size of the workforce dedicated to the Milton response and the important resilience investments made by electric companies in Florida that have enabled crews to accelerate customer restoration where it is safe to do so.

President Biden also emphasized the ongoing industry-government coordination through the CEO-led Electricity Subsector Coordinating Council (ESCC) to ensure unity of effort at the highest levels of government and across all segments of the industry. He and other top government officials joined the ESCC call on Friday to meet with impacted electric company CEOs and industry executives to receive an update on the damage assessment and restoration progress and to ensure an effective and efficient response. This was the ESCC’s eighth call since Helene gained hurricane strength in the Gulf of Mexico.

Every electric company has a detailed plan for restoring power after storms. Companies impacted by Milton are working around the clock to restore power safely and as quickly as possible, when and where conditions allow. In some cases, power restoration could require rebuilding energy infrastructure. You can learn more about this step-by-step process here.

Our thoughts are with those who were impacted by Milton and with those still impacted by Helene. We know that being without electricity creates hardships and is frustrating during ordinary times. We ask for, and greatly appreciate, our customers’ patience and understanding following these extraordinary storms.

Customers impacted by Milton are reminded to:

Stay away from downed or sagging power lines, flooded areas, and debris. Treat all fallen wires and anything touching them as though they are energized. Immediately report downed lines to your electric company.
Follow all recommended precautions if using a personal generator. Never use a generator inside your home, garage, crawl space, other enclosed areas, or anywhere exhaust fumes can enter enclosed spaces. Never connect a generator to your home’s circuits. Plug appliances directly into the generator.
Never place a burning candle near anything that could catch fire or leave a candle unattended. Extinguish candles before going to sleep.
Be aware of scammers and remember that your electric company will never request upfront payment or a reconnection fee in return for restoring your service
Allow electric company workers and contractors to make repairs. They follow strict safety guidelines, so please keep your distance to allow them to complete their work.

*It is important to remember that outages measure customer meters impacted, not the number of individuals without power. Due to the nature of the storm, customers may have experienced more than one outage.

More

Helene

The electric power industry remains focused on the rebuild and recovery efforts following Hurricane Helene, which left nearly 6 million customers* in 10 states without power. Crews continue to work day and night to rebuild energy infrastructure and to restore power to those who are able to receive it in the areas of Georgia and the Carolinas hardest hit by the storm.

As of 3 p.m. EDT, power has been restored to approximately 5.96 million customers—or 99.40 percent of those impacted by Hurricane Helene.

Learn More

Resources

The Steps To The Power Restoration Process

Every electric company has a detailed plan for restoring power after storms. Typically, one of the first steps is to make sure that power is no longer flowing through downed lines. Restoration then proceeds based on established priorities. Below are the steps to restore power after a storm. Learn More.

Step 1

Step 2

Step 3

Step 4

Step 5

Step 6

Step 1

Power Plants

Power Plants Power plants, the primary source of power production, are assessed for damage and restored.

Step 2

Transmission Lines

Transmission Lines High-voltage transmission lines serving thousands of customers over wide areas are repaired.

Step 3

Substations

Substations Substations are brought online in order for power to reach local distribution lines.

Step 4

Essential Services

Essential Services Power is restored to essential services and facilities critical to public health and safety such as hospitals, nursing homes, fire and police departments, and water systems.

Step 5

Large Service Areas

Large Service Areas Crews are dispatched to repair lines that will return service to the largest number of customers in the least amount of time. Service lines to neighborhoods, industries, and businesses are restored systematically.

Step 6

Individual Homes

Individual Homes Once major repairs are completed, service lines to individual homes and smaller groups of customers are restored. Some customers may not be able to receive power to their homes because of damage. Flooding can damage electrical systems, and inspections by a licensed electrician may be required before a home can receive power. Customers should never touch damaged equipment.

Industry Leads Rebuild and Recovery Following Hurricane Milton

Helene

Resources

Hurricane Milton: Mutual Assistance Networks Activated

Flood Safety Tips

Floods and Power Restoration: 5 Things to Know

Mutual Assistance: 5 Things to Know

Tornado Safety Tips

Preparing for Power Outages

Emergency Outage Kit

Hurricane Safety Tips

Videos

Florida Power & Light

We Energies

Georgia Power

Duke Energy

Tampa Electric

Minnesota Power

The Steps To The Power Restoration Process

Photo Gallery

Tampa Electric

Tampa Electric

Public Service Company of Oklahoma

Public Service Company of Oklahoma

Southwestern Electric Power Company

NV Energy

NV Energy

Duke Energy

Duke Energy

Florida Power & Light

Florida Power & Light

Florida Power & Light

Oncor

Oncor

Oncor

Pacific Gas & Electric

Pacific Gas & Electric

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Arizona Public Service

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Tampa Electric

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Florida Power & Light

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Florida Power & Light

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Duke Energy

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Georgia Power