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Edison Electric Institute Operations Executive V.P. David Owens on efforts to ease Hurricane Sandy’s impact on the power system and preparations to ...
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Residents of the New York Tri-State area that's Connecticut New Jersey New -- are now experiencing power outages.
And could be without electricity for up to seven to ten days.
David Owens is executive vice president at the Edison electronic institute -- electric institute he joins us now David thank you for coming in.
-- power plants we all know that a lot of power lines are down and some of the transformers -- down.
What about entire power plants -- any of those at risk.
Yes they could be at risk right now and it's very difficult to assess to what degree they will be at risk because as you know we really haven't met met the peak of the storm yet.
We will have a better assessment after the storm passes -- our area.
But it's anticipate that we could really we could lose some power supply facilities as well.
Well let's talk about your organization you work with 75 major utility companies that actually people about 70% of the industry.
What is it that that you're speaking about with them do you have coordinated efforts do you share mean when it comes to this type of situation do you throw your competitive spirit down and help each other.
Well we certainly do in fact we have a program called our mutual assistance program.
Which has been in place since 1955.
There -- simply by what it means is when a utility experiences and major storm.
Other utilities -- which are not affected by the major storm.
When their cruise thing when -- -- and then they -- there personnel they can assess the damage they -- their tree tremors.
So that they can assist that utility to restore service much more quickly.
It's a program that's worked extremely well.
Over many many storms there on nine mutual assistance groups throughout the United States.
My organization has a responsibility of coordinating those efforts.
Yet David we have some nuclear power plants around New York the one at Indian point of course -- been in the center of controversy for a -- Has that been shut down and if not why not.
Now that plan has not been shut down.
In fact I would say the nuclear power plants are very very safe.
They can withstand nine direct impact from aircraft and so forth so -- this magnitude -- should have no impact at all on the nuclear power.
Facilities okay let's talk about how you're getting utility workers in summer coming from as -- -- candidate even Mexico.
What kind of difference will that make that in getting power up and restored and that help.
And make a tremendous difference because many companies as an example our local utility here Potomac electric power company has requested 3700.
People from other parts of our nation to assist their restoration efforts they're anticipating it.
So we're getting we're getting personnel from as far west.
As Washington State which I think is good how many of the crews are getting on airplanes and are coming here to assist.
The restoration efforts -- line and they understand the business extremely well.
We'll wait and tell laughter the storm has passed over.
We'll assess the damage and why we're assessing the damage many of those crews will be put to work -- don't augment the work force of of existing utility.
Infrastructures.
That there are a lot of old power plants in New York as well some even dating back to the late 1940s.
-- are those going to be -- any of them going to be taken offline in order to make sure that they don't blow out.
No no I don't believe that I'm not as concerned about the power supply facilities.
What -- we're concerned about our.
Tree limb saying get in a way out of electric lines in -- fall into and in the way the electric lines take out the electric service.
We're concerned about some flooding in the coastal areas where we may have underground transformers which are devices that are used to help us.
On maintain electricity.
We're concerned that they could be some flooding to to disable those facilities.
We're concerned as well that there could be some large.
-- to carry a lot of electricity -- transmission lines.
That could also be affected by heavy winds sustained heavy gust of winds.
But and where we're not I'm really troubled about power supply facilities.
It's basically our what our transmission -- transformers.
Our delivery system our energy delivery system that traditionally has been -- part our system that has suffered.
David -- Edison Electric Institute executive vice president we thank you so much for joining us thanks that's --
