Electrical service is now fully restored to all but a handful of customers in Habersham County. Habersham Electric Membership Corporation reports power was fully restored by 10pm last night, but a few overnight outages occurred. As of 10 am, only six members in Habersham and White counties were without power. GA Power service is fully restored. At its peak Monday, more than 4,200 people in Habersham were without power.
Electrical service across northeast Georgia was disrupted on Feb. 16 when Winter Storm Octavia dumped ice across the region. Restoration efforts were complicated by thousands of downed trees. County road crews say at least a thousand trees fell in Habersham alone. Those weren’t the only obstacles crews faced. On Thursday in White County a drunken homeowner pulled a gun on linemen who were trying to repair a broken power pole near his home.
“They had a broke pole, they had to cut some trees and he was just on edge and White County had to come out and arrest the gentleman while they were trying to work and get the power restored,” Habersham County Sheriff Joey Terrell tells Now Habersham. Nothing like that has happened in Habersham but law enforcement was called in to assist with traffic control as utility crews worked alongside the roadways.
Terrell commends the crews who’ve worked four long days in brutally cold temperatures. “We (law enforcement) don’t have it as bad as the power crews do who are out climbing poles, working in just frigid temperatures, trying to get the power back on. They’re a step above us and we give our hats off to them for all they’ve done.”
While many without power have understandably grumbled about being cold, for the most part, customers have been understanding. Winter Storm Octavia swept through the region and left a huge mess for the power companies to clean up.
“When we first responded to the outages Monday night, it took at least two hours to get anywhere. We had to cut our way into areas, but as we were cutting toward the lines, more trees were falling behind us. So we basically had to cut our way into and out of areas,” explains Rob Rowland, Habersham EMC Manager of Construction & Engineering, who has been with the cooperative for 31 years.
Rowland says local road crews cleared the way for the linemen to get where they needed to go. “The Habersham County Road Department has done a very good job of getting the roads cleaned up after the storm. Law enforcement, EMTs and the fire department have provided great assistance in blocking roads when the lines were down,” Rowland says.
In addition to the extreme cold, crews had to deal with ice-laden trees snapping and falling around them. “You’re working in the dark, with lights pointed at where you’re working when you hear a big POP. You just duck and hope it doesn’t hit you,” Rowland shares. “At one point, it got so dangerous because so many trees were breaking and falling that we had to stop working and take shelter.”
Ten crews from EMCs around Georgia helped HEMC get their customers back on line. “We have been blessed with extremely good help! They have been safe, efficient and fast. Some of the crews are from Middle and South Georgia, these guys never complained about the cold. Even when they had to stop and thaw their hands, which froze up through the two pairs of gloves,” Rowland smiles.
He says the experience has been tiring, but rewarding. “We have been humbled by people’s kindness and patience. Some have passed by crews working and came back with hot coffee or food to say ‘thanks’,” Rowland shakes his head in disbelief. “In a couple of instances, members without power went out and bought Starbucks and delivered it to crews because they felt sorry for us working out in the cold. One man stopped his car on the side of the road and got out with 10 pizzas. He doesn’t live in our service territory but wanted to do something for us and let us know he appreciated what we were doing.”
Keeping customers lights on may be their job but Rowland says, there’s more to it than that. “We do it because we love helping folks in need. I hate that storms and outages happen, but it’s all about getting their electricity back on. I wish we could do all of them without anyone struggling while the power is out,” adds Rowland.
With the prediction of more snow and freezing rain for the area this weekend, HEMC is preparing for the possibility of additional outages. GA Power, too, is preparing. Utility trucks are staged in the Belks parking lot in Cornelia ready to respond if more outages occur.
Nicole Dover of HEMC urges members to report outages online at habershamemc.com or by calling (706)754-2114, (706)865-4362 or (800)640-6812. GA Power customers may report outages on its website at georgiapower.com.
If more trees and power lines do fall, Dover advises you to, “Treat all downed lines as if they are energized – avoid the area.” If you see downed lines call your power company immediately. There are also helpful resources online to assist you before another winter emergency occurs. Go to Ready.gov to create customizable emergency checklists and for tips on storm preparation.
