County Power Fully Restored After Fern
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TVEPA crews completed a grueling three-week restoration effort Feb. 14 after Winter Storm Fern left nearly 90 percent of the cooperative’s members without power.
YALOBUSHA COUNTY – Tallahatchie Valley Electric Power Association (TVEPA) completed power restoration to all of its members on Saturday, Feb. 14, following the most devastating damage ever recorded on the cooperative’s system.
At the height of Winter Storm Fern, approximately 26,000 electric meters — nearly 90 percent of TVEPA’s total membership — were without power, according to TVEPA/TVifiber CEO Brad Robinson.
The Feb. 14 milestone marked the final restoration of electric service in TVEPA’s nine-county coverage area, bringing to a close three weeks of intense rebuilding after the ice storm crippled North Mississippi’s power grid.
TVEPA is the largest electric provider in Yalobusha County, serving 5,113 meters. In a public update Monday, Robinson described the storm as one of the most significant outage events in the cooperative’s 87-year history.
“We experienced prolonged freezing rain and heavy ice accumulation that weighed down lines, splintered poles and trees, and caused extensive damage to critical infrastructure throughout the system,” Robinson said.
Nearly 1,600 snapped poles had to be replaced, and many mainline and single-phase lines were reconstructed from the ground up. Robinson said the scope of destruction went far beyond simple repairs and required rebuilding large portions of both the electric and fiber infrastructure.
Robinson provided an in-depth recap, explaining that crews first stabilized substations before rebuilding the backbone of the system. Restoration was further complicated by damage to Tennessee Valley Authority transmission lines, which temporarily prevented power from reaching three TVEPA substations.
“Until those feeds were restored, portions of our system could not be re-energized,” Robinson said.
Road conditions added to the challenge. Interstate 55 was shut down for a period of time, and many roads throughout the service area were impassable due to fallen trees and ice. Robinson described conditions as resembling “a tornado ripping through the service area and then being blanketed by inches of ice.”
“Our right-of-way crews and linemen literally cut their way through the frozen debris to reach our members,” he said.
At the peak of the response, more than 580 workers were engaged in restoration, including mutual aid crews and contractors from across the region. Member service representatives received approximately 64,000 inbound calls during the first 11 days of the outage.
Despite prolonged freezing temperatures and hazardous working conditions, Robinson reported that the cooperative experienced no lost-time accidents during the restoration effort.
Initial restoration efforts prioritized critical infrastructure, including hospitals, nursing homes, fire and police departments, water systems, warming centers, grocery stores and gas stations.
Robinson also credited long-term right-of-way maintenance and system hardening programs with limiting even more severe damage.
“Our preparedness strategy isn’t always highlighted,” he said. “We were as prepared as we could be prior to the storm.”
Fiber restoration through TVifiber is ongoing. Because fiber lines are attached to electric poles, repairs must follow electric restoration and meet strict safety requirements. Additional crews remain in the field repairing fiber lines and network equipment.
Community support played a significant role throughout the response. Robinson reported that approximately 22,500 meals were prepared and delivered to crews during the three-week recovery effort.
“This storm challenged our system, but it also revealed the strength of this community and the dedication of our employees,” Robinson said.
A Recap Across The County
The Water Valley Electric Commission is the second-largest provider in the county, serving 2,150 meters mainly in the City of Water Valley. Commission Chairman Brandon Presley reported that 1,900 customers were left without power in the immediate aftermath of the storm. Eight days later, Feb. 1, the outages were down to fewer than 10 customers.
Presley also reported that the city had 60 outside crew members assisting during the restoration, and more than 1,000 meals were served to crews restoring power to the city’s grid. He also said preliminary estimates indicate the cost of employing outside help and purchasing supplies will easily exceed $2 million.
Entergy serves 466 meters in western portions of Yalobusha County as part of its broader North Mississippi service territory. In a Feb. 7 press release, Entergy Mississippi announced that power had been restored to all customers statewide, approximately two weeks after Winter Storm Fern struck. The company reported that at the peak of the storm, more than 61,000 Entergy customers across Mississippi were without power. Entergy officials credited hundreds of workers, including mutual aid crews from other states, for assisting in restoration efforts under hazardous winter conditions.
The Natchez Trace Electric Power Association serves 455 meters in southeast Yalobusha County and had a portion of its coverage area damaged by the storm. Restoration was completed on Feb. 1.
