Chelsey Simpson

What does it take to turn the lightsback on after a catastrophic eventlike the January 28-29 ice storm?

1 Ice is surprisingly heavy. Just one inch of ice on a single span of electric wire can weigh as much as 1,250 pounds! In southwest Oklahoma,
2½ to 3 inches of ice accumulated on power lines during the Januarystorm, as seen in this photo from Northfork Electric.

There are several factors that determine just how damaging an ice storm will be to electric utilities. If rain falls while air temperatures are below freezing, as much as 65 percent of the rain will stick and freeze to power lines. Wind is another problem. If wind and freezing rain occur at the same time, the wind changes the shape of the freezing water and can result in a shaft of ice shaped like an airplane wing. If the wind continues, the wings of ice lift and shake between
the poles—a phenomenon known as “walking lines.” Extra weight plus movement is too much for most utility poles, and when one snaps others are pulled down with it.

2 At least 13,000 utility poles were damaged during the January storm. Co-ops always keep extra poles in their warehouses in case of disaster, but it would be impractical to have thousands of poles on hand at all times. Acquiring replacement poles and other equipment is one of the first steps to restoring power.

The Sperry-Piltz Ice Accumulation (SPIA) index is a weather prediction tool conceived by Oklahoma Association of Electric Cooperatives employee Sid Sperry. The index can help utilities estimate what supplies they will need and how many extra line crews will be necessary to do the work. In some areas, the January storm was correctly predicted to be a five on the SPIA index, which is the highest rating on the scale.

3 Electricity distribution is like a river in reverse. It originates at a single ocean of power (a generation plant) and diverges from there into a series of transmission lines, substations and smaller feeder lines until it reaches homes and businesses at a trickle of its original strength. When co-ops start assessing storm damage, they know they will need to fix the biggest problems first. They prioritize repairs according to how they can get the most homes back online the fastest.

4 All co-ops have something like a “war room”—a main operations hub where dispatchers monitor outages and direct work crews. In this photo, the map above Cotton Electric employee Mike Ottinger shows the co-op’s entire system on a grid. Many co-ops now have “smart meters” that can be read remotely to determine if power has been restored.

5 During a crisis, all co-op employees chip in to help out. Co-ops also help each other. During this storm, 20 co-ops sent line crews to help in the most damaged areas. In this photo, Cimarron Electric manager Mark Snowden helps pack lunches for crews at Cotton Electric.

6 The most back-breaking work during a power outage always falls to the line workers, who keep long hours in freezing conditions. Thanks to their training and vigilance, there were no serious injuries of any kind during the repair work for the January storm. Over 65,400 outages occurred and it took three weeks to restore power to some members. Sid Sperry offers this perspective: “It took 70 years to build our rural electricity network and three days of ice to bring it down, but it was back up in just three weeks