News Releases

Walton EMC Mopping Up After Weekend Ice Storm

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 31, 2005

Contact Greg Brooks, 770/266-2307, or Katie Woodall, 770/266-2572

MONROE, Ga.– Power has been restored to all but just a handful of Walton Electric Membership Corporation (EMC) customers affected by this weekend's ice storm.

Those remaining are waiting on repairs by electricians to homes and businesses before Walton EMC can safely reconnect power.

“It could have been much worse,” said spokesman Greg Brooks.   “The precipitation that fell Saturday morning was sleet, not freezing rain.   That means the ice buildup on trees and power lines was not as heavy as it might have been.”

Crews from South Georgia and other unaffected areas began arriving at Walton EMC late Friday night.   Saturday morning, those crews along with regular Walton EMC crews began attacking the outages.

Outage numbers were a roller coaster ride throughout Saturday and Sunday.   “We get power restored at one place and it goes out somewhere else,” said Ron Marshall, vice president of engineering and operations.

The most customers out of power at one time was approximately 13,000 around 4:30 p.m. on Saturday afternoon.

Another factor that kept outage numbers down is the company's approach to power line right-of-way management.   “We learned from the 2000 ice storm,” said Marshall, “and made changes to the way we maintain a clear path for our power lines.   It paid off.”

“It's critical for our customer-owners to cooperate with us in keeping our right-of-ways clear.   It's a partnership,” continued Marshall.

“We appreciate the patience and understanding of our customers,” said CEO Ronnie Lee.   “We realize that being without power is inconvenient.   Thanks for all the messages and calls supporting our employees' efforts during trying times.”

Walton EMC is a customer-owned power company that serves 110,000 accounts over its ten-county service area between Atlanta and Athens.   For background information on power outages and the current status of repairs, log on to waltonemc.com and click on “Storm Center.”

# # #