Several hundred Oklahomans traveled several hundred miles east to help other Americans affected by back-to-back hurricanes.
“When fellow Americans are facing a tough situation, Oklahomans are first in line to lend a hand,” Gov. Kevin Stitt said. “That’s the Oklahoma Standard. I’m grateful for each person who has offered to step up and help those impacted by these devastating storms.”
A 10-member emergency response team from the Oklahoma State Department of Health (OSDH) left Oct. 7 on its way to North Carolina to provide support after Hurricane Helene.
North Carolina requested assistance through an Emergency Management Assistance Compact (EMAC), a national interstate mutual aid agreement that enables states to share resources during disasters.
Areas of aid the OSDH team is providing include: • Public health support in the Emergency Operations Center.
• Public health nurse shelter support.
• Environmental health support.
“A critical part of public health is responding to disasters and emergencies,” Commissioner of Health Keith Reed said. “Our team is welltrained and prepared to respond to a multitude of situations within Oklahoma and other states when needed.”
The OSDH team was slotted to support for 15 days, starting upon arrival Oct. 9.
The Oklahoma National Guard is supporting Hurricane Helene relief efforts in South Carolina. The North Carolina Department of Emergency Management submitted, through EMAC, a request to Oklahoma for one CH-47 Chinook helicopter with hoist equipment and aircrew to support Task Force South in Greensville, South Carolina.
The helicopter and its crew of Oklahoma Guardsmen arrived in Greenville on Oct. 6 and will be activated through Oct. 24. The crew, comprised of highly skilled pilots, flight engineers, and support personnel, will work with federal, state, and local authorities to coordinate relief missions.
Law enforcement officers, emergency management personnel and other first responders have joined the rescue and restoration efforts.
Two members from Comanche County Emergency Management left town Oct. 7 and could be in Florida “for 14 days or longer,” Southwest Ledger was told.
The Lawton Fire Department deployed its Swift Water Rescue Team to Orlando, Florida., in preparation for Hurricane Milton.
A team of seven, comprised of six rescue technicians and one battalion chief, departed Lawton at 5 a.m. Oct. 7 and expected to arrive early the next morning, city spokeswoman Caitlin Gatlin said.
Their mission was expected to last between one and two weeks and focus on providing critical support to communities affected by the storm.
The Lawton team joined forces with crews from Guymon and Coalgate to assist in anticipated recovery efforts.
Other Oklahomans who have volunteered to help include at least four Oklahoma Highway Patrol troopers, six members of the Oklahoma City Fire Department, a Norman police officer, 10 first responders from Mayes County Emergency Management, one member of the Rogers County Emergency Management unit and one from Washington County Emergency Management, and individuals from the Craig County Technical Task Force, the Monkey Island Fire Department, the Pryor Fire Department, the Quapaw Tribe, and the Grand River Dam Authority.
PSO, OG&E send hundreds of workers Approximately 380 Public Service Co. of Oklahoma workers and contractors left the state Oct. 8, en route to assist Tampa Electric and Florida Power and Light as Hurricane Milton barreled toward Florida’s west coast.
They departed from the Sooner State one day after approximately 85 PSO workers – including 25 from the company’s Lawton district – returned to Oklahoma from helping restore power to thousands of Hurricane Helene victims.
The first PSO contingent helped restore power to hundreds of thousands of Hurricane Helene victims in several states. Those PSO crews left Oklahoma on Sept. 26 and were released Oct. 6 by Appalachian Power Co. after their massive effort to bring the lights back on for 282,000 customers in Virginia, West Virginia and Tennessee. During the two weeks they were out of state, the PSO crews helped replace 1,455 poles, 214 miles of wire and 438 transformers, the company reported.
PSO line crews, servicers, assessors, fleet mechanics and other personnel joined thousands of workers from across the country to rebuild and repair the energy grid, overcoming challenging terrain and devasting flooding. In total, 7,360 personnel from 27 states faced everything from fallen trees and debris to road and bridge closures.
The second contingent of PSO crews began to receive their work assignments and locations to help bring the lights back on to communities that were affected after Hurricane Milton made landfall Oct. 9. That group included line crews, servicers, tree trimmers, fleet mechanics, and other support personnel.
“Our crews provide mutual aid … in the wake of these powerful storms,” PSO President and Chief Operating Officer Leigh Anne Strahler said. “Their work goes a long way to help hard hit communities.”
There was no definitive timeframe for the PSO workers to remain in Florida.
Strahler said PSO’s ability to respond to customer needs in Oklahoma was not adversely affected by the mutual assistance effort.
PSO provides electricity to 562,000 customer accounts in 232 communities across 30,000 square miles of eastern and southwestern Oklahoma.
The utility serves more than three dozen communities in southwest Oklahoma, including Lawton, Altus, Duncan, Cache, Elgin, Fletcher, Porter Hill, Sterling, Hobart, Apache, Rush Springs, Carnegie, Cement, Chickasha, Cyril, Davidson, Duke, Elmer, Fort Cobb, Frederick, Gotebo, Gould, Grandfield, Granite, Headrick, Hollis, Lone Wolf, Manitou, Martha, Mountain Park, Mountain View, Roosevelt, Snyder, Temple, Terral, Tipton and Waurika.
Meanwhile, Oklahoma Gas & Electric Co. (OG&E) deployed a team of more than 110 line restoration crews Oct. 9 ahead of Hurricane Milton making landfall. The hurricane was expected to arrive in Florida that day as a Category 5 storm, with the potential to cause widespread, prolonged power outages.
Trucks and materials used in reconstruction and restoration efforts for Hurricane Helene in Georgia headed to Florida to help with the anticipated damage from Hurricane Milton.
At the request of Florida Power & Light, nearly 100 line crews and support personnel staged in Savannah, Georgia., then traveled to Florida to communities hammered by Hurricane Milton. The remaining OG&E crew, which specializes in underground line work, drove to Florida to assist Duke Energy Florida.
Both Florida electric companies requested OG&E’s support and are responsible for funding the mutual assistance to speed restoration and rebuilding efforts for their customers.
“We positioned fresh crews in Florida in advance of Hurricane Milton, as our crews supporting Georgia Power following Hurricane Helene completed their work and came home,” said Andrea Dennis, OG&E’s Vice President of Transmission and Distribution Operations. “Helping other electric companies across the country after natural disasters and damage from extreme weather means their customers can recover and rebuild their communities more quickly.”
The restoration efforts in Florida were the fifth deployment for OG&E this year.
As Hurricane Milton closed in on Florida, the Sunshine State turned to the western U.S. for help in restoring electricity service while many power company crews continued reconnecting service in storm-ravaged areas of North Carolina, Georgia and Tennessee.
Crews from as far as Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California traveled to Florida in the wake of Hurricane Helene; consequently, the state reportedly had 30,000 linemen in place by the time Hurricane Milton arrived.