SAN DIEGO, Sept. 26, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- At the request of Florida utilities, San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) will send crews and equipment to help hurricane-battered Florida in its recovery efforts.
An advance team left San Diego for Florida today, with six crews and support personnel expected to arrive in Florida on Tuesday. Trucks and other equipment were shipped by truck to Florida this weekend. The equipment is expected to be in Florida by Tuesday to meet arriving crews.
"Our crews are seasoned veterans when it comes to dealing with emergencies and disasters," said Edwin A. Guiles, chairman and CEO of SDG&E. "When we faced the firestorms last October, other utilities pitched in to help us. We're pleased to return the favor."
While it is standard procedure to have mutual-assistance pacts with nearby utilities, it is rare for a utility to request assistance beyond its immediate region. Florida utilities are recruiting crews from as far away as California and Canada to relieve approximately 16,500 linemen, many of whom have worked for 40 days in a row.
Florida is reporting that more than 1.5 million customers are without power in the wake of Hurricane Jeanne, said SDG&E officials. SDG&E crews are expected to be in Florida for up to a month or more.
SDG&E is a regulated public utility that provides safe and reliable energy service to 3 million consumers through 1.3 million electric meters and more than 800,000 natural gas meters in San Diego and southern Orange counties. Exceptional customer service is a priority of SDG&E as it seeks to enhance the region's quality of life. SDG&E is a regulated subsidiary of Sempra Energy (NYSE: SRE). Sempra Energy, based in San Diego, is a Fortune 500 energy services holding company. To learn more, go to www.sdge.com.