Texas public power utilities Austin Energy and CPS Energy have sent lineworkers to assist with power restoration efforts in Houston after severe storms left more than a million people without power.
Austin Energy on May 17 said it was sending 21 lineworkers and support personnel to Houston.
The Austin Energy team departed was expected to depart over the weekend with bucket trucks and support vehicles to help restore power to affected communities. The team is prepared to provide help for up to two weeks, though that may change depending on the direct impacts of the storm.
Austin Energy received the request for mutual aid from CenterPoint Energy, which was among the companies that sent mutual aid crews to Austin in the aftermath of the 2023 ice storm.
“Providing mutual aid in natural disasters is a tradition among public utilities and this will offer tremendous training opportunities for our crews,” said Elton Richards, Austin Energy Vice President of Electric System Field Operations. “I am honored to work with such caring individuals who work not only on behalf of the Austin community but are also willing to help others in need.”
CenterPoint Energy's damage assessment and restoration efforts are ongoing, with approximately 4,000 lineworkers and 1,000 vegetation professionals requested for mutual assistance support.
According to the CenterPoint website, a strong storm system with winds topping 85 miles per hour caused significant damage to the company's electric system, including Bellaire, Cypress, Baytown, Greenspoint, Humble and Spring Branch.
Restoration efforts in hardest-hit areas are expected to take several days or longer. While there is still extensive damage to assess, crews made progress overnight restoring more than 180,000 customers in the last 12 hours.
Damage from the severe weather resulted in electric service interruptions peaking at nearly 922,000 customers.
CPS Energy reported it had about 100 team members heading to Houston to assist with restoration efforts.
“We’re so grateful for our crew’s commitment to helping fellow Texans, near and far,” CPS Energy said in social media posts.
Approximately 2,200 lineworkers and vegetation professionals arrived overnight and have joined the restoration efforts, CenterPoint Energy said on Saturday, May 18.
