NES says ‘no financial constraints’ driving decisions in restoration efforts as more than 100K remain without power

What This Story Is About

• The Nashville Electric Service Board says crews are continuing to respond to the aftermath of the “most significant ice event since 1994.”

Why It Matters

• More than 100,000 customers across NES’s service area remain without power as of noon Wednesday.

What Happens Next

• State and local crews are continuing to respond and work to restore power across Middle Tennessee.

For Context

• TEMA reports that outages peaked at 315,533 during this ice storm statewide. Nashville outages peaked at about 230,000.

NASHVILLE, TN (WSMV) — The Nashville Electric Service Board met on Wednesday morning to discuss the “most significant ice event since 1994″ that caused outages to peak at about 230,000 across the service area.

As of noon on Wednesday, there are still more than 100,000 customers without power.

NES said that crews are working in dangerous cold conditions with 14-16-hour shifts and around-the-clock operations during this “all-hands-on-deck” situation. The board shared that pre-storm coordination aimed to have about 200 crews ready.

That scaled up to about 900 line workers and about 215 vegetation crew members being deployed. Line worker count increased by more than 430% over the first 62 hours.

Crews are still working to replace about 300 damaged poles throughout the service area.

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Efforts continue to not only restore power but to assist customers throughout their continued hardships. The board said its partnered with Metro Nashville to support warming centers/shelters.

The board also shared that no financial constraints are driving any decisions during NES’s response.

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WSMV4 Investigates reported on Tuesday that NES customers were reportedly receiving incorrect power restoration texts.

During Wednesday’s meeting, NES shared that it has addressed that issue and explained that it can occur when circuits were temporarily “peeled off” to restore larger groups. These notifications have reportedly been stopped.

NES also shared that their restoration strategy is a “disciplined progression,” not a single action. They are working to stabilize, scale and accelerate restoring power. NES said that the stabilization efforts are essential but are not always visible.

The Tennessee Department of Health has confirmed at least eight weather-related deaths across the state. Two of those deaths were reported in Davidson County.

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