Members of the American Public Power Association’s Mutual Aid Committee and APPA officials including APPA President and CEO Scott Corwin in late October met to discuss a wide range of topics related to coordination of mutual aid activities among public power utilities in the wake of major power outages.
The meeting took place on Oct. 24-25 in Boston, Mass.
Corwin thanked attendees at the meeting for their dedication to the committee and to the concept of mutual aid, which has defined the power industry for decades and helped communities respond and recover after major disasters quickly and safely.
He also noted that the role APPA plays in supporting the MAC, and the mutual aid process with its coordination among utilities and governments at all levels, is one of the most important responsibilities that the association has.
The meeting focused on discussion of MAC Goals and Objectives for 2024, below:
Goal 1: Develop new tools and capabilities to further enhance MAC coordination.
Goal 2: Increase the awareness of the Mutual Aid Program and expand the number of participating utilities.
After identifying the strategic goals the MAC identified a series of initiatives that APPA and the MAC will use to achieve those goals. For instance, APPA will update the Mutual Aid Playbook, the guiding document for response activities, to incorporate lessons learned from previous storm responses and outline the process more clearly for members.
The MAC will hold a Spring Meeting at APPA’s offices on March 14-15 to provide an update on the initiatives progress and discussing other activities to support the mutual aid process in advance of the 2024 storm season. Additional information on the mutual aid program is available on APPA’s website.
