JUNO BEACH, Fla. -- As Subtropical Storm Nicole approaches Florida, Florida Power & Light Company has activated its emergency response plan and is urging customers to prepare for power outages.
The latest forecast track from the National Hurricane Center, issued at 10 a.m., shows landfall as a hurricane along Florida’s east coast Wednesday evening or early Thursday morning. Nicole’s large size will likely result in Florida experiencing the storm’s impact well ahead of landfall.
Following Hurricane Ian’s widespread destruction just a few weeks ago, Nicole has the potential to topple storm-weakened trees throughout FPL’s service area, especially in the western and central part of Florida. In addition, Nicole may bring heavy rains, storm surge and flooding that may slow access for crews restoring power after the storm.
“We recognize our customers are experiencing storm season fatigue after Hurricane Ian, but it’s important to be vigilant and focused as this storm approaches,” said Eric Silagy, chairman and CEO of FPL. “Ian saturated soil and weakened trees in many parts of the state, so Nicole could cause trees to topple over and other vegetation and debris to blow into overhead power lines and equipment, which may cause outages. We know our customers are counting on us and we are following our proven plan to be ready to respond safely and as quickly as possible.”
As FPL prepares for widespread outages stretching over multiple days, the company is urging customers to prepare and not to focus on the “centerline” path of the storm, as this often shifts, and treacherous conditions are likely to extend far beyond Nicole’s center.
FPL is positioning its restoration workforce for rapid restoration. In addition to line workers, the restoration team includes:
- Tree-clearing professionals who perform the critical task of removing trees and other vegetation that impact power lines.
- Drone pilots that enable FPL to quickly put eyes on any damage to make sure the right crews and the right equipment are deployed to the right place.
FPL urges customers to review their family and business emergency plans, keep a close watch on the development and path of the storm and follow the advice of local, state and federal emergency preparedness officials.
Preparation and safety tips are available at FPL.com/Storm. FPL is proactively reaching out to customers in advance of Nicole’s projected landfall.
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:
- FPL website: FPL.com
- Twitter: twitter.com/insideFPL
- Facebook: facebook.com/FPLconnect
- FPL Power Tracker: FPL.com/powertracker
- FPL Power Tracker (Northwest Florida): FPL.com/mypowertracker
- FPL app: Download from the App Store or Google Play, or text the word “App” to MyFPL (69375)
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.