News Releases

(LOUISVILLE, Ky.) – As Florida braces for Hurricane Irma’s landfall, Louisville Gas and Electric Company and Kentucky Utilities Company are answering calls for utility assistance in preparation for recovery from the potentially catastrophic damage the storm could cause.

LG&E and KU have coordinated the release of nearly 190 employee and contractor line technicians, team leaders, tree trimmers and additional support staff to assist Duke Energy Florida, and Florida Power and Light. Crews are being dispatched from areas across the LG&E and KU service territories including Lexington, Louisville, Earlington, Elizabethtown and Maysville, Kentucky; and Norton, Virginia. The crews and resources mobilized and began the trip south Thursday morning. Once they arrive, they’ll participate in pre-staging activities while they await further assignments based on the hurricane’s path and areas impacted.

The efforts are a result of LG&E and KU’s participation in nationwide mutual assistance organizations, in which a collection of utility companies assist other utilities in times of natural disasters and crisis situations.

LG&E and KU participate in four mutual assistance programs with Southeastern Electric Exchange, Great Lakes Mutual Assistance, Midwest Mutual Assistance and Southern Gas Association. The partnerships provide access to invaluable resources and hundreds of crews from more than 20 states when mobilizing for potential large-scale restoration efforts.

In addition to the resources headed to Florida, more than 50 of LG&E and KU’s contractors remain in Texas, where they arrived last weekend, continuing to assist American Electric Power with restoration efforts following Hurricane Harvey.

Here in Kentucky

LG&E and KU customers are always the utilities’ top priority. Before making a decision to send crews, LG&E and KU ensure there are ample resources on hand for everything from routine maintenance to emergency situations. The utilities take many factors into consideration — including the weather heading toward Kentucky — when allocating resources.  

The utilities pull small numbers of resources from across the service territories to ensure ample resources are available for the local areas. To help put this into perspective, LG&E and KU cover more than 90 counties in Kentucky and have more than 40 crew centers.