PINEVILLE, LA. - Four named storms in the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico and a severe summer storm that hit the Midwest and East Coast serve as a reminder of the importance of storm preparation and the need for electrical safety.

Strong winds that typically accompany these storms can fall trees onto electric systems and cause widespread damage.  While downed power lines cause power outages, they also can produce dangerous situations for those who come in contact with them or something that they touch. Knowing the location of overhead power lines before the storm can help a person avoid potential dangers after the storm. 

“Before the Atlantic hurricane season began on June 1, Gulf Coast residents tracked the path of two named storms. While, early storms do not automatically signify an active storm season, they should focus our attention on getting ready for storms and create an opportunity to learn what to do during and after a storm,” said Anthony Bunting, vice president of transmission and distribution operations. “Having supplies on hand like food, water, batteries and gasoline for generators can help residents be more comfortable after a storm and reduce the need for road travel through possibly dangerous conditions.”

“We plan for storms all year by reviewing and securing contracts with vendors who can aid with our restoration needs, by maintaining our system and equipment and by assessing the functions of our employee-led storm teams,” said Bunting. “Lessons learned from past storms have improved our storm planning, and we hope our customers have learned from them, too.”

Cleco has additional storm information on its website, including more storm safety and preparation tips, and a detailed outage map that gives restoration times on area- and street-level outages.