Emergency responders at the Department of Energy (DOE) have joined with FEMA and the federal community, the governments of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, the Western Area Power Administration (WAPA) and industry partners in response and power restoration efforts from Hurricane Maria.
One of DOE’s responders on St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands is Ron Alexander, an Emergency Support Function 12 – Energy volunteer from DOE’s Bonneville Power Administration. He deployed in response to Hurricane Irma and joined in the subsequent response to Maria. But ‘response’ doesn’t really capture the hard work or long hours for all those involved, so here’s a look at Ron’s schedule for a recent day:
0600 Drive to VITEMA (the Virgin Islands Territorial Emergency Management Agency)
0630 Meet at bunker for Federal huddle. Grab radio.
0700 Report to personnel at VITEMA, including Fusion center.
0730 Drive and meet VIWAPA (Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority) water executive to collect numbers for storage and needs for power to pumps.
0800 Meet ops manager at Seven Seas Water Plant to collect data on power usage for needs assessment. Wanting to put in 2.4 MW generator.
0830 Drive to meet DOE crews to assure they have what they need for the day and share tactical information.
0930 Drive to assess laydown yards for DOE equipment
1030 Drive to and check birthing ship stats for DOE employees. Find safe parking for bucket trucks and tools. Meet FEMA rep on ship.
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