JUNO BEACH, Fla. – For the fifth time in the 2020 hurricane season, Florida Power & Light Company deployed additional employees and contractors to support mutual assistance power restoration following Hurricane Zeta. FPL’s total restoration workforce includes more than 1,500 employees and contractors. While crews left Florida for states in the Southeast, other FPL employees and contractors assisted sister utility Gulf Power restore electric service to its customers affected by the storm.
“This has truly been an unprecedented hurricane season,” said Eric Silagy, FPL president and CEO. “While FPL’s customers have been mostly spared the damage caused by Mother Nature this year, we have traveled thousands of miles to help our fellow Americans rebuild their lives amidst a global pandemic. I appreciate the efforts our team continues to make to assist our partner utilities help restore power to thousands who are in need.”
Most of FPL’s out-of-state restoration workforce will be supporting Georgia Power. The remaining FPL employees and contractors leaving the state will be assisting Cleco, Entergy Louisiana, Mississippi Power, Alabama Power and Duke Energy Carolinas.
Due to the pandemic, crews will follow safety guidelines to keep everyone safe, including social distancing, increased sanitation measures and wearing masks where appropriate. Signs on trucks remind the public to honor the 6 feet social distancing requirements that help keep the crews and the public safe while they work.
Before traveling this week, FPL crews have deployed to provide mutual assistance four previous times this hurricane season. The first occurred following Hurricane Isaias when crews traveled to New Jersey, helping to restore thousands of homes and businesses. After Category 4 Hurricane Laura made landfall near Lake Charles, La., crews were sent to Louisiana and Texas, along with critical equipment to assist restoration efforts. FPL crews also traveled within Florida, lending a helping hand to Gulf Power in the wake of Hurricane Sally. Finally, crews returned from Louisiana earlier this month after restoring more than 6,000 homes and businesses impacted by Hurricane Delta.
Florida Power & Light Company
Florida Power & Light Company is the largest energy company in the United States as measured by retail electricity produced and sold, serving more than 5.1 million customer accounts or an estimated 10 million+ people across the state of Florida. FPL’s typical 1,000-kWh residential customer bill is approximately 30% lower than the latest national average and among the lowest in the U.S. FPL’s service reliability is better than 99.98%, and its highly fuel-efficient power plant fleet is one of the cleanest among all electric companies nationwide. The company was recognized in 2020 as one of the most trusted U.S. electric utilities by Escalent for the seventh consecutive year. A leading Florida employer with approximately 8,900 employees, FPL is a subsidiary of Juno Beach, Florida-based NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE: NEE), a clean energy company widely recognized for its efforts in sustainability, ethics and diversity, and has been ranked No. 1 in the electric and gas utilities industry in Fortune’s 2020 list of “World’s Most Admired Companies.” NextEra Energy is also the parent company of Gulf Power Company, which serves approximately 470,000 customers in eight counties throughout northwest Florida, and NextEra Energy Resources, LLC, which, together with its affiliated entities, is the world’s largest generator of renewable energy from the wind and sun and a world leader in battery storage. For more information about NextEra Energy companies, visit these websites: www.NextEraEnergy.com, www.FPL.com, www.GulfPower.com, www.NextEraEnergyResources.com.