Alabama Power honored with Emergency Response Award for March 3 severe weather response

In recognition of employees’ highly coordinated and rapid response to a line of thunderstorms March 3, the Edison Electric Institute (EEI) has named Alabama Power a recipient of an Emergency Response Award.

That day, a line of thunderstorms was forecast to pass through Alabama Power’s service area. The storms were not expected to be severe, but Mother Nature had other plans: Many highly populated areas experienced a significant increase in straight-line winds, taking out trees, poles and power lines across the state.

Alabama Power crews sprang into action as the number of customers experiencing outages increased quickly and dramatically. More than 300,000 Alabama Power customers lost power during the March 3 storms.

Presented to EEI member companies twice a year, the Emergency Response Awards recognize recovery and assistance efforts of electric companies following service disruptions caused by extreme weather or other natural events. The winners were selected by a panel of judges following an international nomination process. The awards were presented during EEI’s summer board of directors and CEO meeting held in conjunction with EEI 2023.

“Ensuring the safety of our customers, communities and crews is our industry’s top priority. Safety is especially critical during severe storms and extreme weather events, such as hurricanes, tornadoes and winter storms,” said EEI President and CEO Tom Kuhn. “I commend Alabama Power’s commitment to restoring service for its customers safely and efficiently under challenging conditions following the severe weather in March. Alabama Power and its storm response team are extremely deserving of this national recognition, and I am honored to present them with this well-earned recovery award.”

The company’s storm center team worked to coordinate mutual assistance from around the Southeast to bolster the company’s response times.

“We are proud to be recognized for our storm response efforts and commitment to serving our customers,” said Corey Sweeney, Alabama Power storm center operations manager. “We are also very thankful to be part of an outstanding group of utilities who are always willing to lend a hand.”

Alabama Power has begun using new collaboration tools to improve communication during severe weather events. These tools allow storm coordinators to easily move crews around the state after they complete work in a particular area, decreasing overall restoration times.

“We know that our customers depend on us to keep the power on, so we work to be ready to assist in any situation,” said Scott Moore, Alabama Power senior vice president of Power Delivery. “I’m very proud of the craft, knowledge and skill our folks utilize each day. Their commitment and professional attitude to serve our customers is second to none.”

EEI’s U.S. member utilities provide electricity to more than 220 million people in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. EEI also has among its members more than ​65 international electric companies, with operations in more than 90 countries.