GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – Hurricane Milton left millions without power when the Category 3 hurricane made landfall on Oct. 9 near Florida’s Siesta Keys.
Dozens of utility companies from all over the United States sent crews to help with restoration efforts.25 Wisconsin Public Service crew members were among those deployed to the Tampa area.
During their week in Florida, WPS crews worked 16-hour days, helping restore portions of the power grid, replacing utility poles and restringing wires.
Jon Joanis, a WPS electric operations manager, lead the team down in Florida. He says the restoration efforts went smoothly and the damage they saw was mostly flood-related.
Joanis says restoring power was no easy job for the crew members.
“The first day, it was extremely hot. The guys were getting worn out. So we had to make multiple runs for Gatorades and water and fruit to try to keep them going,” says Joanis.
But it was even harder for the crew members to leave their families for as long as they did.
“Our families go through a lot when we go and do these. Any time we have a local storm or go and do this, it’s a team effort on both sides of it to make it work,” says Joanis.
His linemen take a lot of pride in their work.
“Our guys are awesome. When the call comes, even if it is back here in the middle of the night, they get up, they are ready to go. They may be tired, they may be sore, they may be worn out, but they’re going to respond. And they do their best to get their customers back on quickly and efficiently,” Joanis says.
WPS crews say residents were extremely frustrated with not having power for over a week, but were nothing but appreciative when they heard the group came from Wisconsin.
“Towards the end there, they were getting a little frustrated, understandably. They’ve been out for about a week and a half at that point. But when they hear that you are coming from thousands of miles away to come help them out, they completely change their demeaner. Once we were done putting their power back on, everybody was appreciative and just thanked us for our efforts,” says Joanis.
Previously, WPS assisted in restoring power in Georgia and Florida after Hurricane Irma. They also sent crews to help restore power after extreme weather in California last year.
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