Message from Operations: A look back at the June storm

As potential storms approach, our committed team at KEM Electric Cooperative is prepared to respond quickly and safely, working to restore power as soon as conditions allow. In late June, KEM Electric’s service area faced dangerous weather with damaging winds accompanied by hail and thunderstorms. During these conditions vegetation and buildings do not fare well and it will occasionally impact our system as well. While a cooperative can be prepared for storms and utilize technology to identify outages and damage, we would not be able to assess the full impact without our employees and members.

The National Weather Service reported that wind gusts from the storm ranged from 66 mph to 101 mph within KEM Electric’s service area. High winds across a vast prairie can do a fair share of damage. While the storm began before 10 p.m., crews were not dispatched until the storm was over for the safety of our crews. Dedicated crew members work through the night and into the early morning to restore power to members. Several KEM Electric substations were impacted by the weather conditions resulting in three substations enduring extended outages. 

Due to the vast area impacted by the storm stretching across the whole service territory, KEM Electric brought in some assistance. KEM Electric crews along with a crew from Roughrider Electric Cooperative were able to make restorations to members in a timely manner the following days. The impact to KEM Electric’s system included utility poles damage and a number of broken power wires due to falling trees and flying debris. KEM Electric crews continued to clean up broken utility poles and fix downed wires in the following days after the storm.   

Community members helped play a role in restoration efforts as well. They were paramount in reporting downed power lines, trees in the power lines and damaged poles which helped KEM Electric’s operation department determine the source of the issues. This additional assistance helped crews identify what equipment they would need to bring for repairs and streamline the restoration process.

We understand that when a storm hits our service area, it impacts everyone from homes, businesses and operations. It is our top priority to restore power back to members in a safe and efficient manner. We are grateful to have understanding members who make these tasks a bit easier from reporting power outages to lending a helping hand to crews in the field. Thank you all once again for your patience and assistance as we worked to navigate the impacts of this storm.