PG&E Workers Help Restore Power In Florida After Hurricane Irma

There are roughly 125 Pacific Gas and Electric Company workers in Florida helping Florida Power and Light restore electrical service to customers impacted by Hurricane Irma over the weekend as part of a mutual-aid agreement.

"That agreement calls for support between us and Florida Power and Light in the event of catastrophic things like hurricanes or earthquakes," PG&E spokeswoman Andrea Menniti said Tuesday.

The workers were deployed on Friday, before the hurricane struck.

"I was asked by my supervisor if I wanted to be a part of it, and I was excited to come help," PG&E crewman Mike Accetta said. "It's just a good experience, and I like helping other people."

The crews rode out the storm in a hotel, and they were already there on the ground when the restoration effort began Monday in the West Palm Beach area.

"In the area where PG&E crews are staged we've seen downed power lines, toppled trees taking out power lines and branches causing outages," Menniti said.

But West Palm Beach is on the eastern side of the state, and areas in Western Florida were hit harder, according to Menniti.

This was the second day of the recovery effort for PG&E workers in Florida.

So far they've been inspecting power lines and assessing damage. Repairs are expected to begin Wednesday.

The mutual aid agreement between Florida Power and Light and PG&E was established in 2014. It was first activated for Hurricane Matthew in 2016. This is the second time it's ever been used.

By Bay City News Service / Image via PG&E