Wednesday afternoon update – Columbia restoration efforts

Mississippi Power crews in Columbia made substantial progress Wednesday morning in the restoration efforts following an outbreak of severe weather on Dec. 23.

Electric service was restored to approximately 3,300 customers around 9:30 a.m. As of 11:30 a.m., approximately 177 customers in Columbia are still without power. Mississippi Power will continue working to restore their service as quickly and safely as possible.

“We’ve implemented our storm-tested restoration plan,” said Distribution Director Randall Pinkston. “Our linemen and engineers have significant experience in emergency restoration situations.”

Approximately 200 linemen, engineers and support personnel from Mississippi Power, Gulf Power and contract crews from Mississippi, Alabama, and Louisiana are taking part in the restoration effort. These resources join Mississippi Power’s local Pine Belt personnel working on the restoration.

Crews worked throughout the night to restore transmission service to the primary substation that serves Columbia. The majority of 51 broken utility poles were also replaced overnight.

Corporate Communication’s next update on the restoration efforts will be Wednesday afternoon.