OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) — Life for hundreds of thousands of us intersects with Omaha Public Power District. So, its decisions and direction are important.
3 News Now's Mary Nelson wanted to speak in-depth with President and CEO Javier Fernandez on the heels of such an extraordinary storm season, and, at a time of never-before-seen growth for the Omaha area.
This story is the first in a series of five. In which, Fernandez reflects on storm recovery in 2021 and this summer.
Continue reading for the broadcast transcript.
Javier Fernandez was named OPPD President and CEO in 2021 - just days before a substantial and destructive storm.
"We knew there were a couple storms forming outside our service territory... three storms merged into a gigantic one," he recalled.
When it was over, 188,000 customers were without power. At the time, it was the largest outage in the District's history.
"I think probably the thing that stands out was the pride that I felt. When you walk into the Situation Room with the control operators... We've got this. And we just started to restore," Fernandez shared.
That storm helped prepare him and his team for an even larger event: July 31, 2024. Fernandez says it forced them to think differently.
"The devastation that we saw from this storm was unlike any other other one that we've seen before... It was widespread, tree damage, wind speeds - those are familiar to us. But how those came and they combined together and the destruction that those left behind was different. For example, we replaced 30 percent more poles than we replaced in 2021... Three times more cross arms that were damaged and had to be replaced. Twice as many transformers."
About 220,000 customers lost power - some were without for several days.
"Looking at it and understanding the totality of the damage and all of these things that needed replaced - against the backdrop of the number of people who were without for days? Are you satisfied with that form of the response and if not, which lessons will you carry forward?," Mary Nelson asked.
"I am very pleased, but not satisfied. This is part of being a learning organization," Fernandez answered.
He continued, "Things we didn't think were doable back then, now we know we can do things a little bit differently. So, I think, from that perspective, it's always learning."
Including, how to keep safe and manage their own crews - combined with mutual aid, or those from out of town.
"In 2021, at the peak of the storm, we had about 950 boots on the ground. This time around, we had 1,500 - something we didn't think was doable."
Cracking the code, Fernandez emphasize, made an absolute difference in the pace at which power was restored.
Additional series topics include:
- Projects in Yutan, Sarpy County and Standing Bear Lake
- Fort Calhoun and nuclear power
- Solar power and lessons learned from Platteview Solar
- North Omaha and OPPD's net-zero quest
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