***BROKEN POLE/REPLACEMENT UPDATE***

PICKENS, South Carolina — Today, we are releasing a map of the recorded broken poles created by our GIS/mapping department. Please understand that this is a pilot initiative that we continue to track internally. Crews are still factoring in newly discovered damage to our grid. If a member doesn’t see a red bubble signifying a downed pole at their home, it does not mean our crews are unaware of it.
Damage assessments remain ongoing, particularly in the more remote areas we serve. Our service territory has the most rugged terrain in the state, which means access to many of these poles poses a unique challenge. While it takes approximately four hours to replace a broken pole, many being replaced now are in areas inaccessible by machinery. This means the poles must be dug and placed by hand, just like they were in 1940 when the cooperative was formed. Some spans of line have as many as 10 broken poles on them. This will be a long process.
As of this morning, we had 712 broken poles. This number will continue to grow and is more than triple what we recorded from the 2020 tornado. We are approaching almost 200 poles that have already been replaced. There are approximately 500 more to go.
We intend to release another update from Vice President of Engineering Walker Evans later today about the state of our power grid.”
– RILEY MORNINGSTAR | BLUE RIDGE ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE