KANSAS CITY, Mo., Jan. 19, 2007 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- Utility workers across the Midwest continue to fight bitter cold and icy conditions to restore electrical service to thousands of customers left without power following the third wave of a severe winter storm.
In response, Aquila this week sent nearly 100 of its own employees from Kansas, Colorado and Missouri to assist other utilities in the areas hardest hit. The company also has offered to send 30-plus two- and three-man contract crews to help other utilities repair downed power lines and replace poles snapped by the heavy ice and brutal winds. Utilities are estimating it may take several more days to get power restored to all customers.
"People rely more than ever on electricity for everything from heat and light to power for their computers," said Ivan Vancas, operating vice president for Aquila in Missouri. "When a storm like this puts so many people in peril, company lines no longer matter and utility employees join forces to get customers back one line. We share the same dedication and appreciation for the effort it takes to restore power in such bitter cold. As one of our lineman has said: 'It's in our blood. You want to get power restored.'"
The most recent storms ravaged a large swath of Missouri last weekend with a thick coating of ice and blowing snow. The damage pushed through communities like a 50-mile-wide brick wall. Damage stretched from across Kansas and into Missouri, heavily affecting areas around Springfield at the southwest tip of Missouri across the state to St. Louis on the eastern border. Those communities are now in a federal disaster area that includes 34 counties and the city of St. Louis.
The majority of Aquila crews are helping restore service to customers of Empire District Electric Co., based in Joplin, Mo. These crews came from the company's operation in western Missouri and its electrical power operation based in Great Bend, Kan.
Aquila's Missouri operations also released 25 contract tree-trimming crews and all but three of its contract linemen crews so they can assist with the restoration work. More than 80,000 of Empire's customers were without power earlier this week. Utilities expect it may take several more days to completely restore service.
Aquila also sent crews from its Colorado operations in the Pueblo and Canon City areas of Colorado to assist the Ameren electric company in St. Louis. More than 156,000 Ameren customers lost service when the storm hit over the weekend. Five contract tree crews from the company's Kansas operations also were made available to assist in southwest Missouri.
Based in Kansas City, Mo., Aquila owns electric power generation assets and operates electric and natural gas transmission and distribution networks serving nearly 1 million customers in Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska. More information is available at www.aquila.com .
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