JUNO BEACH, Fla. – Florida Power & Light Company (FPL) is adding additional crews to work throughout the night and tomorrow in response to forecasted high wind associated with the passage of a cold front throughout much of its service area. At this time, the most likely affected areas include the Florida counties in the west and north as well as Martin and Palm Beach counties.
“We understand that our customers are preparing for the holidays and may be concerned about news reports regarding the approaching cold front and with it, extremely windy conditions through tomorrow,” said Mike Spoor, vice president of Transmission & Substation. “With that in mind, we have taken the necessary steps to ensure we have additional overhead line and tree crews available to respond safely and as quickly as possible in the event of a power interruption.”
Recently, the company announced that it had cleared trees and palm fronds from 100,000 miles of power lines throughout its 35-county service territory in Florida since 2006. This major accomplishment, which is the equivalent to a distance four times the earth's circumference, is part of the company's comprehensive program to make its electric system more resilient against severe weather and improve everyday reliability. Earlier this year, the company also announced that it inspected its one-millionth distribution pole as part of its commitment to inspect 1.1 million poles every eight years.
Should customers experience a power interruption, the easiest way to report it to the company is on a mobile device atwww.FPL.com. The progress of their restoration can also be tracked at www.FPL.com using FPL’s Power Tracker map. As a safety reminder, if customers see a downed power line they should call 9-1-1 or FPL at 1-800-4 OUTAGE (1-800-468-8243).
FPL would also like to take this opportunity to wish all of its customers a safe and happy Thanksgiving holiday.
Florida Power & Light Company
Florida Power & Light Company is the largest rate-regulated electric utility in Florida and serves the third-largest number of customers of any electric utility in the United States. FPL serves approximately 4.6 million customer accounts and is a leading Florida employer with approximately 10,000 employees as of year-end 2012. During the five-year period ended December 31, 2012, the company delivered the best service reliability among Florida investor-owned utilities. As of year-end 2012, its typical residential customer bills are the lowest in Florida, and based on data available in July 2012, are about 26 percent below the national average. A clean energy leader, FPL has one of the lowest emissions profiles and one of the leading energy efficiency programs among utilities nationwide. FPL is a subsidiary of Juno Beach, Fla.-based NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE: NEE). For more information, visit www.FPL.com.