As Hurricane Florence makes it way toward the Atlantic coast, Missouri’s electric cooperatives are mobilizing to answer the call for help. At the request of Santee Electric Cooperative in Kingstree, S.C., 162 Missouri cooperative lineworkers from 33 of the state’s electric cooperatives will be traveling to South Carolina to assist in the cleanup after the storm has passed. Missouri will be sending both construction and service crews to help with the power restoration efforts.
They are a part of a massive show of strength in advance of the storm that currently includes linemen from 11 states out of the hurricane’s path. As soon as it is safe for them to mobilize, the crews will descend on Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina to help lineworkers in those states restore power as quickly as possible.
The Missouri crews will gather on Friday morning to travel east so they’re closer to the area but still out of harm’s way until the storm passes Saturday evening.
Missouri’s electric cooperatives have a long history of lending a helping hand to its cooperative peers in trying times. Missouri crews first helped with hurricane relief efforts in 2004 when the Gulf Coast was hit by Hurricane Ivan and have been doing so since. The most recent deployment was in 2017 when crews traveled to Florida and Georgia following Hurricane Irma.
The favor has been returned, as Missouri co-ops received assistance restoring power following ice storms in 2007 and 2009.
Missouri’s restoration efforts are being spearheaded by the Association of Missouri Electric Cooperatives. The Jefferson City-based association represents all 47 of Missouri’s electric cooperatives.
Here is a list of the cooperatives sending help:
Atchison-Holt Electric Cooperative, Rock Port
Barry Electric Cooperative, Cassville
Black River Electric Cooperative, Fredericktown
Boone Electric Cooperative, Columbia
Central Missouri Electric Cooperative, Sedalia
Citizens Electric Corp., Perryville
Co-Mo Electric Cooperative, Tipton
Consolidated Electric Cooperative, Mexico
Crawford Electric Cooperative, Bourbon
Cuivre River Electric Cooperative, Troy
Farmers’ Electric Cooperative, Chillicothe
Gascosage Electric Cooperative, Dixon
Grundy Electric Cooperative, Trenton
Howell-Oregon Electric Cooperative, West Plains
Laclede Electric Cooperative, Lebanon
Lewis County Rural Electric Cooperative, Lewistown
Macon Electric Cooperative, Macon
North Central Missouri Electric Cooperative, Milan
Osage Valley Electric Cooperative, Butler
Ozark Border Electric Cooperative, Poplar Bluff
Pemiscot-Dunklin Electric Cooperative, Hayti
Platte-Clay Electric Cooperative, Kearney
Ralls County Electric Cooperative, New London
Sac Osage Electric Cooperative, El Dorado Springs
SEMO Electric Cooperative, Sikeston
Se-Ma-No Electric Cooperative, Mansfield
Southwest Electric Cooperative, Bolivar
Tri-County Electric Cooperative, Lancaster
United Electric Cooperative, Maryville
Webster Electric Cooperative, Marshfield
West Central Electric Cooperative, Higginsville
White River Valley Electric Cooperative, Branson
Central Electric Power Cooperative, Jefferson City