FPL monitoring weather, preparing for hurricane season
On Wednesday, Florida Power & Light announced it was monitoring a potential tropical system in the Caribbean Sea and urged its customers to prepare for hurricane season, which started June 1.
While the latest system is the subject of much uncertainty, the latest forecast from the National Hurricane Center indicates a significant chance the storm could affect parts of Florida in the coming days.
“In Florida, it’s not a question of if a storm will impact us, but when, where, and how strong,” FPL Chairman and CEO Eric Silagy said. “We know it only takes one storm to upend our communities, so we are always preparing for the next storm regardless of what the hurricane forecast says. In addition to preparing year-round, we’re making significant investments and leveraging technology to make our energy grid smarter, stronger, and more storm resilient so we can be there for our customers when they need us the most.”
It has been 30 years since Hurricane Andrew and five years since Hurricane Irma – both storms that serve as reminders of the importance of storm preparation.
Since the hurricanes of 2004 and 2005, FPL has invested in protecting the energy grid against extreme weather and improving day-to-day reliability. These investments include replacing wooden transmission structures with new ones made of steel or concrete; hardening main power lines; inspecting power poles and replacing ones that no longer meet FPL’s strength standards; installing more than 200,000 intelligent devices to detect and prevent power outages along the grid; managing trees and other vegetation; and placing more neighborhood power lines underground through the Storm Secure Underground Pilot Program.
In addition, FPL urged its customers to make their own hurricane season preparations and be ready in case a major storm interrupts power.
