Like a rite of passage during hurricane season when a major storm strikes U.S. soil, a Kissimmee Utility Authority crew has deployed to DeFuniak Springs in the Panhandle to assist with restoring power in the aftermath of Hurricane Isaias.
The crew of Dustin Kelly, Mike Taylor, Josias Cabrera, Cory Breen, Kyle Castleton, Tyler Mook, Kyle Bezold, Alberto Gutierrez, Yonny Vasco, Lantz Trisler, Jamie Boswell, Robert Diaz, and Zachariah Sirrell departed Kissimmee just after 1 p.m.
As part of KUA’s mutual-aid agreement with utilities across the nation, the utility sent 12 linemen, a mechanic, and a convoy of vehicles to assist Choctawhatchee Electric Cooperative Inc. (CHELCO) with restoring power to an estimated 68,900 customers, which is approximately 90% of its system. Some 469,000 customers total in Florida's Panhandle were left in the dark by the storm which made landfall near Destin as a Category 2 storm around 8:30 p.m. Friday. By mid-afternoon Saturday that number was down to around 430,000. The KUA crew joins 16,000 utility linemen working to restore power, according to the News Service of Florida.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced Saturday afternoon that state officials had confirmed two deaths in Florida related to Isaias in Escambia County, one when a tree fell on their house, and another who was running a generation in their garage.
