Growing up in Nebraska, I saw my fair share of wild and windy weather. How windy? I always joke that, until I moved to Michigan, I had never seen snow fall straight down—it was always blowing sideways! So, when I interviewed at MEC in October and experienced some of Michigan’s iconic fall weather, I was looking forward to trading chaos for calm skies. Turns out, the joke was on me.
This year has already had quite a bit of eventful weather, and once again, March came in like a lion with tornadoes and an intense windstorm. Unfortunately, it seems like this is becoming the norm. While our line clearance program and smart grid technologies go a long way to reducing the impact that severe weather has on our infrastructure, these storms have sure been tearing up our lines and causing many outages.
Therefore, this month, I thought I would share how we restore your power when Mother Nature strikes: It all starts with preparedness.
Preparedness means having the right people and equipment ready when needed. MEC not only has our linemen, dispatchers, and supervisors on call and ready, but we also have contractors available to help replace poles, fix wires or fiber, and cut trees. Being prepared before the storm hits is the way to win the battle.
Safety: Storm restoration begins with responding to 911 calls reporting downed power lines. Getting to those scenes quickly is critical not only to protect the public but also to allow first responders to move on once the lines are safely de-energized.
Damage assessment and repairs: We also begin damage assessment and immediate repairs while we respond to 911 calls. Throughout this process, we rely on team members known as “bird dogs,” who scout damage and report it to our dispatchers. This enables linemen to focus on restoration and ensures they bring the appropriate materials and equipment to specific outages.
Once the overall assessment is complete, we can make the educated decision on how many crews we need and be able to better answer your primary question, “When will I be back on?”
We generally start with the largest outages first, as well as any outages that impact restoration further down the line. Whenever possible, we reroute power from other sources so customers can have power while repairs are happening.
It’s important to know that if your neighbor’s power comes back before yours, it’s often because they’re served by a different source or were part of a different outage. And if you see our trucks working nearby and then leave, it means they need to make additional repairs elsewhere along the line. Your power will be restored once we complete all repairs affecting your service.
Generators and what we can’t repair: If you have a generator, it’s critical that it be installed correctly. Improperly installed generators can be deadly to our crews because they can unexpectedly re-energize lines. To avoid this, you can purchase a GenerLink that we install, or a qualified electrician can install a transfer switch.
Also, if your meter base, service riser, or weatherhead is damaged, those repairs must be completed by a qualified electrician, as this equipment is customer owned. Once repairs are finished, please contact us to schedule reconnection. You will then have 10 days to provide proof of a passed electrical inspection.
Storm restoration is an all-hands-on-deck scenario. From our call center to our teams in the field and myself, we don’t stop until everyone’s lights are back on. While it certainly seems like Michigan weather is becoming more extreme and is giving my Nebraska storm memories a run for their money, I want you to know that MEC is prepared for whatever Mother Nature throws our way.