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Insights > Entergy's Louisiana Utilities Preparing to Respond to Barry
Entergy's Louisiana Utilities Preparing to Respond to Barry
07/11/2019
Entergy's Louisiana utilities are prepared to respond to the potential of widespread outages from Tropical Storm Barry, which according to the National Hurricane Center is forecast to bring strong winds, heavy rains, higher tides and coastal flooding to the state.
We encourage customers to keep safety top of mind while finalizing their preparations as this storm approaches Louisiana.
Entergy Louisiana and Entergy New Orleans have assembled a storm team of hundreds of workers to begin restoration work as soon as it is safe to do so. Facing severe weather can be extremely challenging, and we continually work to improve our storm response and our infrastructure.
We’ve worked to storm-harden our system. From aggressive preventive maintenance programs to using steel transmission structures, elevating substations that might flood and installing “isolation” devices on lines to reduce outages, our goal is always to restore power safely and quickly.
Weather forecasts and computer models based on knowledge from past storms are used to predict the estimated number of customers without power and the number of days needed to restore power. With this storm forecast to make landfall as a Category 1 hurricane, it could take up to several days to restore power.
Following a storm, we deploy scouts to assess damage. Depending on the severity of the damage, it may take up to three days before we know how long until power is restored.
As safety is always the highest of priorities, and as we assess the damage, we’ll begin restoring service where it is deemed sound to do so.
Our employees are our greatest assets; we will keep our workers safe during a storm response.
We are committed to keeping our employees safe and sheltered during dangerous periods caused by high winds, flooding and other severe storm conditions.
Power is restore faster in areas with less damage. Some of the hardest-hit areas may take longer, which should be factored into customers’ personal storm plans. Remember, safety first.
After the storm passes, we will begin damage assessments and start restoration work to critical infrastructure. Once damage assessments are complete, we will be able to provide estimated restoration times.
When restoration starts, keep in mind that if you don’t see us working near you, we may be working on another part of the electrical system that you can’t see but must be repaired to get power to you.
Keep Safety Top Priority
- Preparation for potential severe weather is vital for us and you, our highly valued customers.
- Above all, stay safe. A personal plan for you and your family is the best way to stay safe and be storm ready.
- Visit the Entergy Storm Center website for planning tools that can help guide you through the decisions you need to make.
- Follow the orders from your local emergency response agencies. Whether you shelter in place or evacuate, you should prepare to protect your home.
- Basic emergency supplies and a first aid kit are key items to keep on-hand during severe weather.
- Visit the Entergy Storm Center website in advance for details on how to prepare for hurricanes and other types of storms.
- We continuously keep our communities informed throughout a storm using the following channels:
- Download our free app for your smartphone at entergy.com/app.
- Sign up for text alerts. From your cell phone, text REG to 368374.
- Visit the Entergy Storm Center website and our View Outages page.
- Follow us on Twitter.com/entergy or Facebook.com/entergy.
- Call us at 800-9OUTAGE (800-968-8243).
- Follow updates in your local news media, like radio, television and newspapers.
- For strong hurricanes, we evacuate from the predicted landfall area, but quickly return as soon as conditions are safe to begin restoration.
