Baldwin EMC prepares for Hurricane Zeta

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SUMMERDALE, Alabama — Baldwin EMC staff and employees are busy preparing for the possibility of Hurricane Zeta, as it moves toward the Gulf Coast. Although Zeta’s path is not certain, Baldwin EMC officials are not taking any chances.

“We have a disaster emergency plan in place,” says Mark Ingram, vice president of corporate services and public relations. “While at this time it doesn’t look like Baldwin County will take a direct hit from Zeta, what we learned from Hurricane Sally is that we can’t predict what path these storms will take until their final hours. We want to assure our members we are prepared should Hurricane Zeta reach our service area, and we’ll be ready to respond within a matter of hours after a storm hits and begin restoring power as safely and quickly as possible.”

According to Ingram, Baldwin EMC officials are monitoring the storm around the clock and all crews are on emergency storm alert status. They urge members whose medical conditions require electricity to make alternate plans for their healthcare needs in the event outages are experienced.

Baldwin EMC has taken all standard precautionary measures, and their emergency preparedness team has confirmed that all preliminary requirements for storm preparation have been met. They have additional supplies stocked such as poles, transformers, wire, and other needed equipment.  In addition to regularly scheduled emergency crews, Baldwin EMC has extra crews on standby prepared to respond should the area experience widespread outages.

Baldwin EMC staff will continue to watch this storm closely and would like to remind their members to keep abreast of the storm’s development and take safety precautions in the event Hurricane Zeta affects Baldwin County.

Additionally, the cooperative encourages everyone to prepare an emergency kit that includes the following:

  • Flashlight with fresh batteries.
  • Radio (or portable TV) with fresh batteries.
  • Extra batteries.
  • Candles and holders.
  • Bottled water.
  • Non-perishable food.
  • Manual can opener,
  • Paper plates and plastic utensils.
  • Paper towels and napkins.
  • Waterless hand sanitizer.
  • Charcoal grill with charcoal and lighter.
  • Wind-up clock.

For the most up-to-date outage information, follow Baldwin EMC on Facebook (facebook.com/BaldwinEMC/), Instagram (instagram.com/baldwinemc) and Twitter (twitter.com/baldwinemc) or visit baldwinemc.com.

Baldwin EMC is a member-owned electric cooperative serving more than 80,000 accounts in Baldwin and Monroe Counties in southwest Alabama, including Alabama’s Gulf Coast. This institution is an equal opportunity provider and employer.