What a year! Despite its challenges, we saw many examples of our community coming together to help one another. Take a look back at the top stories from 2020.
1. Texans Helping Texans Following Hurricane Laura
On Aug. 27, Hurricane Laura brought 150 mph winds, causing widespread power outages. As one of 19 Texas Public Power members offering mutual aid support to other utilities, a LP&L team made the nine-hour drive to help the City of Newton restore power. The LP&L team put in 16-hour days, replacing over 50 broken poles, repairing hundreds of structures, putting up miles of wire and trimming countless trees. Working alongside more than 100 linemen from three other utilities in New Braunfels, Seguin and Garland, the crews fully restored power to Newton customers in just nine days – earlier than expected. Read more.
2. Lining Up to Answer Brownfield's Call for Help
On June 18, Brownfield was hit by a microburst – straight-line winds – with recorded speeds of 100+ miles per hour. Needing support to get power back on for its residents, Brownfield Utilities reached out to LP&L. After three days, 300 hours of work and more than 240 miles traveled, LP&L’s crew rebuilt nine double circuit poles and supported a 20-pole job, restoring full power to Brownfield. Read more.
3. Utility Payment Assistance Options Offer Support During Pandemic
Earlier this year, we worked with City of Lubbock Utilities to share utility payment assistance options to help customers get caught up on utility bills. One of the programs highlighted was the Comprehensive Energy Assistance Program (CEAP), supported by the City of Lubbock Community Development Department and local nonprofit Neighborhood House. Read more.
We’re ready to bring on 2021, with new stories to share. Bookmark Plugged In and check back for new spotlights, energy savings and safety tips and the latest news! Be sure to also follow us on Facebook and Twitter and subscribe to our customer newsletter.