Hardest-Hit Co-ops Face Weeks of Restoration Work in the Wake of Helene

A week after Hurricane Helene rammed ashore at Florida’s Big Bend and left a devastating path of damage through the Southeast, some of the hard work is over. But even harder work lies ahead.

As of midday Friday, the number of electric cooperative outages in affected states dipped below 250,000. More than 1 million meters were again online, thanks to the restoration effort of local and mutual aid crews from more than half of the states.

At the same time, co-op officials agreed that washed-out roads and mudslides meant the remaining quarter-million outages would be the most difficult to fix. North Carolina had nearly 55,000 remaining outages, with South Carolina at 60,800 and Georgia at 130,715 as of midday Friday.

In all, about four dozen co-ops, including several in Florida, still were grappling with the ruins from Helene’s overpowering winds and rains.

“The challenges that crews are facing in the field are unprecedented, from widespread flooding and landslides to rebuilding electric infrastructure that has been damaged or destroyed by the power of wind and water,” said Dirk Burleson, general manager at Rutherford EMC in Forest City, North Carolina, where more than 150 mutual aid workers labored side by side with co-op personnel.

“Crews are going to extraordinary lengths to access damaged infrastructure and reach isolated areas. In many cases, power lines have been completely washed away, and crews are building from the ground up.”

At least 215 people across the Southeast were reported dead from Helene, according to the Associated Press. Preliminary estimates from Moody Analytics put cost of the storm at $20 billion to $34 billion, with property damage at $15 billion to $26 billion. 

The harrowing experiences and arduous repairs were being captured by major media Friday as hard-hit Blue Ridge Energy in Lenoir, North Carolina told the co-op story to a New York TV outlet.

“It is truly a Herculean effort by all, most certainly the army of 500-plus of line technicians, tree and grading contractors and all staff here who can possibly be of assistance in the field,” said Renee Walker, director of public relations at Blue Ridge Energy.

The most grueling work was centered on nine co-ops, three each in the Carolinas and Georgia struggling with at least 10,000 outages. Satilla REMC, based in Alma, Georgia, had the most at 41,333, or about 70% of the membership, with damage to almost all of its 7,000 miles of line.

Still, the co-op had come a long way since President and CEO Romeo Reyes had to drive a tractor to work following Helene because his driveway was full of fallen trees.

“Without a doubt, riding out Hurricane Helene is one of the most frightening things I have experienced in my lifetime,” said Reyes, who has been with the co-op for 39 years.

Among mutual aid crews were four lineworkers and two bucket trucks that traveled 1,200 miles from Wright-Hennepin Electric Cooperative Electric Association in Rockford, Minnesota to Blue Ridge Electric Cooperative in Pickens, South Carolina.

Tim Sullivan, CEO of Wright-Hennepin, said reports indicated the rugged Blue Ridge Electric terrain meant poles must be drug and placed by hand, just as they were in 1940.

“Because of the difficult conditions and extent of the damage, our crews might be gone a week or more. I can’t think of a more powerful demonstration of the cooperative spirit. We are proud of them, and we are proud of the work we do every day.”

That spirit was displayed across the cooperative network as employees suffered personal and property damage yet made their way to work to help members. Alamo, Georgia-based Little Ocmulgee Electric Membership Corp. hailed one 31-year-employee on social media who lost his home to the storm yet cut his way through debris and blocked roads to report to his job.

“His story reminds us all of the strength found in the importance of supporting one another, especially in times of crisis,” the co-op said.

Walker noted that the communications infrastructure was so decimated in Blue Ridge Energy’s territory that some members likely are still unaware of the extent of the damage and the restoration effort.

“Members who have their power restored—and many of those who don’t yet—have sent the most encouraging words and sentiments over social media and in many other ways, I am sure. That means so much to everyone here.”

Co-ops reported shipments of new poles on a daily basis to replace thousands of broken ones. Setting a new pole can take a three- or four-member team up to four hours, and that’s under ideal conditions.

Cases in point: In Moultrie, Georgia, Colquitt EMC said it had more than 1,000 downed poles. Laurens Electric Cooperative in Laurens, South Carolina, where crews from 17 states were at work, tallied 500 broken poles, while Blue Ridge Energy’s count was 700, with more to be discovered.

The Cooperative Development Foundation (CDF) has set up a dedicated page for donations to raise funds for disaster relief to electric cooperatives and co-op employees directly affected by Hurricane Helene. 

Steven Johnson is a contributing writer for NRECA.

Earlier Coverage of Hurricane Helene:

• For Co-ops Grappling With Helene’s Destruction, It’s All Hands on Deck
• Line Crews Lean on Cooperative Spirit in the Wake of Helene’s Destruction
• ‘This Is an Unprecedented Situation’: Co-ops Pick Up the Pieces After Helene
• Hurricane Helene: Tracking the Co-op Response
• Co-ops Faced With 1.25 Million Outages in the Wake of Hurricane Helene