FPL’s massive restoration continues following the devastation caused by Hurricane Ian
September 29, 2022

JUNO BEACH, Fla. – Florida Power & Light Company (FPL) continues its massive, around-the-clock restoration effort in the wake of Hurricane Ian, with more than 750,000 customers restored as of 4 p.m.

The company continues to bolster its restoration workforce, which is now approaching 21,000 men and women, including mutual assistance from 30 states. After working through the night, crews have continued restoring power safely and as quickly as possible throughout the day, with 1.2 million customers currently without power.

“Daylight revealed Hurricane Ian’s utter destruction, and our hearts go out to our fellow Floridians whose lives have been upended,” said Eric Silagy, chairman and CEO of FPL. “We know the vital role electricity plays. Rest assured, we will not stop until we can get the lights back on. We are grateful for our restoration crews, many of whom have traveled from far and wide to join forces with the FPL team to get every customer’s electricity back.”

In addition to the crews who have restored power where possible to hundreds of thousands of customers, damage assessment teams continue to work throughout FPL’s service area, including dozens of drone teams who are providing visuals of the damage. This vital task enables FPL to send the right crews and the right equipment to the right places to restore power safely and as quickly as possible.

Initial assessments show FPL’s transmission system – which carries high-voltage electricity from power plants to substations and is the backbone of any electrical system – survived Ian without losing a single transmission structure.

One of the strongest hurricanes to ever make landfall in Florida, Ian has so far caused more than 2 million outages for customers across FPL’s entire peninsular Florida service area. Ian barreled ashore Wednesday afternoon near Fort Myers as a catastrophic, high-end Category 4 storm packing sustained winds of 150 mph.

FPL has now mobilized 38 staging, parking and processing sites around the state to strategically position personnel and equipment for the restoration effort. Specialized crews are working to clear downed trees and debris in roadways to allow lineworkers to gain access to restore power.

Immediately after a storm, FPL knows if main power lines have been damaged. If customers believe their power is out for this reason, there is no need to contact FPL. Customers should call 911 or FPL at 1-800-4OUTAGE (1-800-468-8243) only to report dangerous situations such as downed power lines or sparking electrical equipment. Customers can report an outage at FPL.com/Outage or on the FPL app.

Restoration estimates

In the wake of a hurricane, FPL knows customers need as much information as possible in order to make decisions for their families. Every hurricane is different, but FPL’s goal is to provide customers more accurate information faster than ever before.

The company aims to provide an estimate of when service will be restored to 95% of customers in an area within 24 hours of a storm leaving that area. The assessment process will take longer in Southwest Florida because crews are hampered by extensive flooding, storm surge, downed trees and other debris in the area. Because of the conditions in Southwest Florida, FPL anticipates many customers will face prolonged outages. Many homes and businesses may have suffered extensive damage that makes them unable to safely accept power.

Power has essentially been restored to Southeast Florida, which was hit by Ian’s feeder bands for 36 hours.

In Northeast Florida, which is still feeling the impacts of Ian, FPL expects to complete damage assessments and provide estimated times of restoration on Friday.

Be certain your home or business is ready to receive power

While FPL works to restore power safely and as quickly as possible, some homes and businesses may have suffered damage that makes them unable to safely accept power. If the power is on next door but yours is not, make certain that your home or business is ready to receive it by checking the connection to FPL.

  • Look at the meter, the box that holds it and connected pipes and wires on the wall of the building.
  • If the meter box, pipes or wires are bent or broken, repairs may be needed before FPL can restore power. If it looks damaged, contact a licensed electrician. Do not touch damaged equipment.
  • If the meter itself is damaged, restoration personnel will replace it.

If your home has water damage from leaks or flooding, water may come into contact with electrical wiring:

  • Use caution when disconnecting electric appliances that are still plugged in. Don’t stand in water when operating switches, plugging in or unplugging electrical cords.
  • When resetting circuit breakers, wear dry, rubber-soled shoes and stand on something dry and non-conductive, such as a dry piece of wood or wooden furniture.
  • If you have any doubts about your home's electric system or are unsure of how to proceed, call a professional, licensed electrician.
  • In a flooded home, battery-powered lighting is the safest lighting source. Use flashlights when inspecting a home for possible damage.

What FPL is doing

FPL is restoring power outages caused by Hurricane Ian:

  • FPL’s restoration workforce is actively responding to outages caused by this destructive and damaging storm.
  • Nearly 21,000 restoration personnel, as well as the necessary supplies and equipment, are dedicated to the effort.
  • The company is operating 38 staging, parking and processing sites to help speed restoration.
  • FPL is focused on restoring power safely and as quickly as possible, and the company is asking customers to make safety their top priority as well.

Additional resources  

Customers can download the FPL app for on-the-go, instant and secure access to their accounts. Customers can report or get the latest information on an outage. The app is available for download in the iOS App Store and Google Play. To quickly download the FPL app, text the word “App” to MyFPL (69375). Customers also can sign up for storm updates by texting the word “Join” to MyFPL (69375).  

How to stay informed  

FPL communicates restoration information to customers frequently through the news media and the following resources:   

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Florida Power & Light Company

As America’s largest electric utility, Florida Power & Light Company serves more customers and sells more power than any other utility, providing clean, affordable, reliable electricity to approximately 5.8 million accounts, or more than 12 million people. FPL operates one of the cleanest power generation fleets in the U.S. and in 2021 won the ReliabilityOne® National Reliability Award for the sixth time in the last seven years. The company received the top ranking in the southern U.S. among large electric providers, according to J.D. Power’s 2021 Electric Utility Residential Customer Satisfaction StudySM and 2021 Electric Utility Business Customer Satisfaction StudySM. The company was also recognized in 2020 as one of the most trusted U.S. electric utilities by Escalent for the seventh consecutive year. FPL is a subsidiary of Juno Beach, Florida-based NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE: NEE), a clean energy company widely recognized for its efforts in sustainability, corporate responsibility, ethics and compliance, and diversity.  NextEra Energy is ranked No. 1 in the electric and gas utilities industry in Fortune’s 2022 list of “World’s Most Admired Companies” and recognized on Fortune’s 2021 list of companies that “Change the World.” NextEra Energy is also the parent company of NextEra Energy Resources, LLC, which, together with its affiliated entities, is the world’s largest generator of renewable energy from the wind and sun and a world leader in battery storage. For more information about NextEra Energy companies, visit these websites: www.NextEraEnergy.com, www.FPL.com, www.NextEraEnergyResources.com.

 

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