By: Adrienne Bourgeois | Senior Communications Specialist, Utility Communications
Published 10-10-24
Submitted by Entergy Corporation
More than 1,000 employees and contractors currently supporting Hurricane Helene restoration efforts will begin to deploy to support peer utilities in Florida following anticipated power outages caused by Hurricane Milton.
Approximately half of those still working in the areas devastated by Helene will remain in support of Helene restoration while the other half of the workforce will move into Florida in anticipation of Milton’s landfall. Over the next few days, we expect to shift additional resources that are released from Helene to support Florida utilities. Entergy will continue to offer as many workers as possible to the affected area while balancing people and resources here to meet the needs of its customers.
Milton, currently a Category 5 hurricane, is forecast to make landfall later this week as a Category 3 or Category 4 hurricane. The storm is expected to bring catastrophic and deadly storm surge, as well as damaging hurricane-force winds over the Florida Peninsula still recovering from the impact of Hurricane Helene.
“Forecast predicted this storm season would be an active season,” said Louis Dabdoub, vice president, incident response. "I am grateful our team is in the position to lend a helping hand to our neighbors. My prayers are with everyone who will be impacted by this storm, and all of those recovering from the damage caused by Hurricane Helene. I am proud our company values community and is committed to helping our industry peers in their time of need.”
Sending power restoration crews to help is part of long-standing mutual assistance agreements where utilities support one another in times of need. When requested, Entergy’s utilities will send as many workers as they can spare to the affected area while keeping enough at home to meet the needs of our customers.
In addition to meeting bi-annually, mutual assistance companies provide labor and materials to each other when needed to strengthen their partnership. Entergy participates in four different mutual assistance organizations.
Entergy is a Fortune 500 company that powers life for 3 million customers through our operating companies in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. We’re investing in the reliability, resilience and growth of the energy system while helping our region transition to cleaner, more efficient energy solutions. With roots in our communities for more than 100 years, Entergy is a nationally recognized leader in sustainability and corporate citizenship. Since 2018, we have delivered more than $100 million in economic benefits each year to local communities through philanthropy, volunteerism and advocacy. Entergy is headquartered in New Orleans, Louisiana, and has approximately 12,000 employees. Learn more at entergy.com and follow @Entergy on social media. #WePowerLife
Corporate Social Responsibility at Entergy
For more than 100 years, Entergy has powered life in our communities through strategic philanthropy, volunteerism and advocacy. Entergy’s corporate social responsibility initiatives help create and sustain thriving communities, position the company for sustainable growth and are aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Our top CSR priorities are education/workforce development, poverty solutions/social services and environmental programs. Entergy annually contributes $16-$18 million in shareholder-funded grants to approximately 2,000 nonprofit organizations in the communities where we operate. In addition, our employees volunteer more than 100,000 hours in those communities' values at more than $3 million.
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