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9 November/December 2024 | THE DAVEY BULLETIN HURRICANES HELENE AND MILTON Florida's Big Bend area did not get a break after being hit by Debby the month prior. Hurricane Helene made landfall near Perry, Florida, on September 26 with sustained winds of 140 mph. The storm made its way up through Georgia and the Carolinas. Just shy of two weeks later, Hurricane Milton hit near Siesta Key, Florida, with 120 mph winds. Davey employees came to the rescue in record numbers. Upwards of 1,600 Eastern Utility, 315 DRG, 215 R/C services, 172 Surgery Company, 15 Davey Tree Expert Co. of Canada, Limited, a dozen CLS, as well as motor carrier and safety support staff employees, responded to Helene and Milton cleanup efforts – a total of more than 2,300 Davey employees in all. "Hurricane Helene was the largest storm event we've ever had," said Johnny Page, vice president, Gulf region, Eastern Utility. "In my 28 years with Davey, I've never seen anything like it, not even with Hurricane Katrina. It stands out as the most trying. This is the fi rst time utilities called us to assist, and we didn't have enough people to take care of their needs. The industry as a whole did not have enough personnel to assist." Page said destruction from Helene was widespread in North Carolina. Crews also responded in South Carolina, Savannah, Georgia, and down to Tallahassee, Florida. Mike Knott, production manager, Gulf region, Eastern Utility, said South Carolina endured quite a bit of damage during Helene. "There were widespread power outages with nearly full electric grids down and the tree damage made some roads impassable, as well as downed wires from broken electric poles. Some areas dealt with fl ooding," Knott said. "Overall, crews had a positive attitude. After several days of staying at off-site lodging, crews were placed in a tent city where they were provided with meals, showers, laundry, and fuel. Despite several employees having damages to their own homes, crews were here to put the needs of others before their own and that speaks volumes about our team." HURRICANES DEBBY AND FRANCINE In August, Hurricane Debby made landfall in the Big Bend area of Florida, weakened to a tropical storm, then made another landfall near Bulls Bay, South Carolina, bringing heavy rainfall and fl ooding. A total of around 280 Eastern Utility employees from the Midwest and southeast responded in Florida and the Carolinas to help with storm recovery for multiple utilities for one week. Neal Avery, area manager, Gulf region, Eastern Utility, said while Debby was a short storm response, the people we helped during every one of these hurricanes this season who were affected by the storms were super grateful for our presence. "They were so happy to see us out there in the fi eld helping restore power for them," Avery added. Hurricane Francine made landfall along the southern coast of Louisiana on September 11 with maximum sustained winds of 100 mph. Around 125 Eastern Utility employees responded from the southeast, traveling to Covington, Louisiana, to aid Cleco Power for one week. Joseph Pate, senior account manager, Gulf region, Eastern Utility, said the crews worked well together. "We're getting better with tying the lines down," Pate said. "That's a new thing we've started and have been implementing on storms this year. This method controls the forces from the line instead of cutting it and letting the lines fl ing up in the air." A right-of-way is fl ooded in Florida in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton. Eastern Utility Xcel Energy account employees are seen utilizing roping and rigging to pull the communication cable out from beneath a large oak tree that was uprooted during Hurricane Milton. Utility Asset Management services, Davey Resource Group, employees responded to aid Georgia Power in removing damaged power lines and stacking them in piles to make way for construction of the replacement poles.

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