Local linemen leaving to help recovery effort

Waves slam the Oceana Pier & Pier House Restaurant in Atlantic Beach, N.C., Thursday, Sept. 13, 2018 as Hurricane Florence approaches the area. (Travis Long/The News & Observer via AP)

As Hurricane Florence approaches, area professionals are preparing to offer help where they can.

Six linemen from the SEMO Electric Cooperative are leaving today for South Carolina at the request of South Carolina-based Santee Electric Cooperative.

“Missouri is just answering the call,” said SEMO Electric Cooperative manager of external affairs Glen Cantrell Thursday.

Forecasts indicate the storm poses a serious threat, but Cantrell said recent reports suggest the storm is losing strength.

“Time will tell because it’s just now hitting shore,” he said. “It went from a [category] four to a two, so it’s losing energy which is a good thing.”

Still, Cantrell said, crews will not know exactly what to expect until the storm clears. He said typically in post-hurricane areas, poles remain but lines and sometimes transformers are missing.

“There will be elements they’re not used to dealing with,” he said, “But that’s part of the experience.”

For example, he said, the Carolinas’ terrain differs from what Southeast Missouri-based crews’ home service area.

“We’re pretty flat around here,” Cantrell said. “We can reach most of our poles here in a bucket truck while there they might not be able to.”

Personnel from the Cape Girardeau Fire Department are also keeping an eye on the storm, though a funding issue may keep them from deploying.

Fire Chief Rick Ennis said Thursday in the wake of past disasters, such as the 2017 hurricane that hit Houston, the federal government asks state governments for aid, who then deploy local-level personnel. The federal government then reimburses the states, who then reimburse cities for expenses. This time, however, the State of Missouri has said there is not enough money to reimburse personnel.

“Since we’re not an agent of the federal government, they can’t reimburse us directly,” Ennis said.

But the resources are in place, he said, should the call come through, including multiple swiftwater boats with crews and support staff. About a dozen personnel from Cape Girardeau, Jackson and Sikeston were sent to Houston during that crisis, Ennis said.

“We’re ready and willing to help as necessary,” he said. “But funding may interrupt that.”