SIERRA VISTA, Ariz. (KGUN) — Sulphur Springs Valley Electric Cooperative has replaced nearly 100 power poles during this year's monsoon season — more than the cooperative has replaced in recent years.
Nathan Hodges, Senior Vice President of Operations for SSVEC, said the season has been unusually demanding.
"It was a very, very busy monsoon season," Hodges said.
Most of the damage occurred in Willcox, where an August storm knocked down 60 poles and caused a four-day outage for some members.
Hodges said wind and lightning affect infrastructure in different ways.
"The wind causes us the most damage, the physical damage to knock down the poles," he said. "The lightning will cause damage. You know, damage our equipment. It doesn't typically knock down any poles, but it will cause outages."
According to the National Weather Service, Sierra Vista received 11 inches of rainfall this season and Willcox received 7.74 inches — both above average.
Hodges said the rain, while welcome, has kept crews busy.
"Lots of rain for our area. We certainly need the rain here in southeastern Arizona, and we have enjoyed that. But it has been busier than average," he said.
With rain still falling, the cooperative is staying prepared by continuously restocking materials as they are used.
"As we use material, we're constantly reordering to have more come in, so we don't have to really adjust our plans," he said. "It's really just responding to what we're what we need, what we're using in the moment."
SSVEC is reminding members to sign up for alerts, which the cooperative says is the fastest way to receive updates — especially during multi-day outages.
Hodges said crews remain on standby.
"Our plans remain the same. Stay vigilant of what the weather is going on. Of course, have our crews ready and well stocked in supplies if outages occur," he said.
When asked about the cooperative's priority during outage restoration, Hodges said safety leads every decision.
"We ask for patience during outage time," Hodges said. "Everyone wants the power back on. We want the power back on. Our our job, our mission is safe, reliable, and affordable power. We want to get the power back on, but not at the you know; safety always comes first."
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Alexis Ramanjulu is a reporter in Cochise County for KGUN 9. She began her journalism career reporting for the Herald/Review in Sierra Vista, which she also calls home. Share your story ideas with Alexis by emailing alexis.ramanjulu@kgun9.com or by connecting on Facebook.
