Ameren workers in Puerto Rico steadily restoring power

Work continues in storm-ravaged Puerto Rico, months after hurricanes Irma and Maria battered the U.S. territory island in September.

Ameren Missouri, Ameren Illinois and Ameren Transmission crews are working now to help restore power to the Carolina Region, a rural, mountainous area on the northeast coast, immediately east of San Juan, according to a company news release.

The third wave of workers is there now, said Steve Dixon, superintendent of electric operations for Southeast Missouri, based out of Cape Girardeau.

Dixon is team lead for the current wave of workers, and is responsible for day-to-day operations and safety, he said.

�There�s a lot of combination work,� Dixon said. �The devastation is so massive, there�s really no way to work in one area and move to another.�

Dixon said their main intent is to restore power, and with it, a sense of normalcy to people who have been living a daily reality of devastation since last fall.

To restore power, teams must clear debris including trees and poles from roads, set new poles in place, and make sure the way is clear for the trucks to come in, Dixon said.

Every day, teams leave the staging area and climb narrow, steep roads through the mountainous terrain, Dixon said.

The terrain is on the edge of El Yunque National Forest, Dixon said.

�It�s a beautiful area to work in,� Dixon said, adding there are about 1,700 Ameren customers in the Carolina region.

The first Ameren crews arrived Jan. 26, according to the release, and since then, power has been restored to about 90 percent of customers.

The terrain Dixon and team are working on now is more challenging and more remote, and, he said, even though customers have been without power for so many months, they�re grateful for the workers� response.

�The people have been fantastic,� Dixon said. Local people insist on cooking and bringing food for the workers, he said, and as parts of neighborhoods have gotten connected, �they�ve been very, very appreciative.�

Dixon said he�s been especially pleased to see results of energizing schools.

Without air conditioning, without power, Dixon said, �there�s not really a lot for them to do.�

But once the schools have power, children are excited about going back to school, and that�s been great to see, he said.

�It�s been amazing to see the quality of life difference our folks have been able to make for average folks,� Dixon said. �It�s changed their whole dynamic.�

People who do have generators have been able to reach a semblance of normalcy, Dixon said, but having regular access to power gives people comfort.

Ameren has deployed nearly 225 full-time line workers since January, according to the company news release, and in that release, Ray Wiesehan, vice president for corporate security and crisis management at Ameren, said safe, efficient service is key.

mniederkorn@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3630

Pertinent address:

El Yunque National Forest, Puerto Rico