An Overview of Utility Company Emergency Preparedness during Two Significant Hurricanes

Landfalling tropical cyclones present a significant threat to damaging utility infrastructures. Utility companies routinely request aid from other utility companies whenever large-scale damage is anticipated or when post-event damages are overwhelming.

QuantumWeather^âis a collaborative effort between Ameren Missouri, a mid-western utility company, and Saint Louis University. QuantumWeather^âprovides Ameren Missouri asset deployment decision support based upon high spatial and temporal resolution mesoscale weather forecasts. When these forecasts and decision support tools indicate a high probability of infrastructure damage, Ameren Missouri responds by dispatching crews to regions where utility damage is likely beforedamaging weather events occur.

This overview will focus on both the emergency preparedness actions between Ameren Missouri and QuantumWeather^âmade prior to Hurricane Florence’s landfall and the post-landfall support provided to the transit of crews to/from Ameren Missouri to Puerto Rico to rebuild a power infrastructure decimated by Hurricane Maria.

Before Hurricane Florence made landfall, Ameren Missouri received mutual aid requests from utility companies anticipating catastrophic power outages. In preparation for Florence, QuantumWeather^âprovided key, relevant decision support to Ameren Missouri. A priority in both operations (Florence and Maria) was for AmerenMissouri to safelyrespond to the calls for mutual aid. The weather-based decision support system that QuantumWeather^âprovided to Ameren Missouri allowed Ameren Missouri to conduct the best possible response to mutual aid requests in both situations while keeping AmerenMissouri crews and assets safe.