OG&E crews returning home after rebuilding, recovery efforts in Florida following Hurricane Milton
SARASOTA, Fla. (KFOR) — More than 100 Oklahoma Gas & Electric (OG&E) linemen and support crew are on their way back home following a seven day deployment to Florida to assist in restoring power and recovery efforts following Hurricane Milton.
OG&E crews were sent to aid in rebuilding and recovery efforts following the widespread damage that Category 3 Hurricane Milton left behind when it made landfall the night of October 9. Destructive winds, an outbreak of tornadoes and flooding caused damage to millions of homes and businesses throughout the west coast of Florida.
A workforce of 20,000 workers from 41 different states and Canada, including OG&E, joined in to support efforts in restoring power to more than two million Floridians.
OG&E crews worked 16-hour shifts while in Florida in order to rebuild the grid and restore power for residents of the Sarasota area.
Florida Power & Light requested assistance as they worked to help remove down trees, clear roadways and allowed safe access to infrastructure that was critically damaged from the storm.
“I’m encouraged and humbled by our crews’ hard work over the past week to restore power to communities impacted by Milton,” said Chris Bristol, OG&E Distribution Construction Manager. “Rebuilding and restoring power after a natural disaster of this scale is no small task – it takes a village, and we’re grateful to the Floridians who kept our teams’ morale high, bringing support and kindness as we worked to restore power to their communities as quickly and safely as possible.”
14 members of the underground crew for OG&E also assisted in restoring power in the coastal community Largo which experienced considerable structural damage.
Duke Energy Florida requested specialized assistance in Largo from OG&E due to the worry of both Hurricane Milton and Hurricane Helene causing heavy damage to underground lines.
OG&E's mutual assistance in Florida is now the company's fifth deployment of 2024.