PRECO Crews to help Panhandle restore power after Hurricane Michael

Posted: October 11, 2018 at 10:42 am

Peace River Electric Cooperative (PRECO) lineworkers are heading to Florida’s Panhandle to help Tri-County Electric Cooperative restore power and repair damage caused by Hurricane Michael. Tri-County EC, serving more than 18,000 consumers in four counties, is headquartered in Madison, and is located 40 miles from the Gulf of Mexico and 140 miles northeast of where Michael made landfall.

Prepared to work 16-hour shifts, nine PRECO employees are bringing five bucket trucks, two digger derrick trucks, two flatbed trucks, two pole trailers and one side-by-side all-terrain vehicle with them to the storm-damaged area. They will work closely with Tri-County to replace poles and repair damaged power lines and equipment.

“Whenever an electric cooperative suffers catastrophic damage, other co-ops consider it a duty and a privilege to stand alongside their line crews to help restore power,” shares Randy Shaw, PRECO CEO. “Just over a year ago, PRECO received assistance from other electric co-ops after experiencing widespread damage from Hurricane Irma, so we’re ready to repay the kindness showed to us by the co-op community.”

PRECO, a Touchstone Energy® distribution electric cooperative headquartered in Wauchula, Florida, provides electric service and energy solutions to more than 40,000 member/consumers in 10 Florida counties in central Florida: Brevard, DeSoto, Hardee, Highlands, Hillsborough, Indian River, Manatee, Osceola, Polk and Sarasota Counties. Through almost 3,500 miles of power lines, the electric cooperative has been in business since 1940 as a member-owned, not-for-profit organization.