Duke Energy Florida aims to wrap up restoration for customers by Friday night

• 14,000 customers remained without power as of 9:30 a.m. today
• Repair crews to restore power to most remaining impacted customers by tonight; many will be restored sooner

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla., Nov. 11, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Duke Energy Florida today said it is on track to restore nearly all customers who lost power during Tropical Storm Nicole by 10 p.m. tonight, though many will be restored sooner.

Repair crews have restored power to more than 250,000 customers in Florida.

As of 9:30 a.m. today, about 14,000 customers remained without power.

"This storm impacted every area in our service territory, but we were ready," said Todd Fountain, Duke Energy Florida's storm director. "We appreciate everyone's patience and support as we work to safely restore everyone's service as soon as possible."

The panhandle and north central parts of the service area, including the Big Bend region, experienced lingering tropical storm conditions from Nicole, causing outages well into Thursday evening. Restoration to those areas will be a main area of focus today, along with the harder-hit sections of areas south (Pinellas, Pasco) and east (Volusia, Seminole, Orange).

Power is expected to be restored to 90% of Duke Energy Florida customers in the following counties by 10 p.m. tonight: Alachua, Columbia, Marion, Sumter, Suwannee and Taylor.

Power is expected to be restored to the remaining Duke Energy Florida customers in the following counties by 3 p.m. today: Orange, Pasco, Pinellas, Seminole and Volusia.

Estimated power restoration times indicate the latest time that the company expects to restore power in a given area. However, power for many customers in that area will be restored sooner.

Customers who are registered for Duke Energy text alerts will receive a text once an estimated restoration time is established for their location. (Sign up to receive outage alerts.)

The company also is providing estimated power restoration times for specific counties at duke-energy.com/outages.

• Stay away from power lines that have fallen or are sagging, or may be hiding in floodwater and debris. Consider all lines energized as well as trees or limbs in contact with lines. Report all power line hazards to Duke Energy at 800.228.8485 or contact your local emergency services department or agency.
• If a power line falls across a car that you're in, stay in the car. If you MUST get out of the car due to a fire or other immediate life-threatening situation, do your best to jump clear of the car and land on both feet. Be sure that no part of your body is touching the car when your feet touch the ground.
• Disconnect or turn off any nonessential electrical equipment that may start automatically when power is restored to avoid overloading circuits.
• Know the proper food safety precautions to take during and after a power outage. For more, see the FDA's food safety guidelines.
• Do not walk, swim or drive through floodwaters.
• If you use a generator due to a power outage, follow the manufacturer's instructions to ensure safe and proper operation. Operate your generator outside; never operate it inside a building or garage. Please watch for utility crews and turn the generator off when crews are in your area. The electrical load on the power lines can be hazardous for crews making repairs.
• Never replace a fuse or touch a circuit breaker with wet hands or while standing on a wet or damp surface.
• If the meter box is pulled away from a customer's house or mobile home service pole and power is not being received, the homeowner is responsible for contacting an electrician to reattach the meter box and/or provide a permanent fix.
• Home and business owners whose structures sustained water or other structural damage and who are unsure if their electrical equipment (e.g., internal wiring, meter box, etc.) is damaged should consider contacting a licensed electrician for an assessment. In some instances, an electrical inspection may be required by the county before Duke Energy can reconnect service. An electrician can advise customers on next steps.

More tips on what to do after a storm can be found at duke-energy.com/StormTips.

Customers who experience a power outage can report it the following ways:

• Text OUT to 57801 (standard text and data charges may apply).
• Visit duke-energy.com on a desktop computer or mobile device.
• Use the Duke Energy mobile app (download the Duke Energy app on your smartphone via Apple Store or Google Play).
• Call Duke Energy's automated outage reporting system: 800.769.3766 (800.POWERON).

For storm or power restoration updates, follow Duke Energy on Twitter (@DukeEnergy) and Facebook (Duke Energy) or visit dukeenergyupdates.com.

Duke Energy Florida, a subsidiary of Duke Energy, owns 10,300 megawatts of energy capacity, supplying electricity to 1.9 million residential, commercial and industrial customers across a 13,000-square-mile service area in Florida.

Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK), a Fortune 150 company headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., is one of America's largest energy holding companies. Its electric utilities serve 8.2 million customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky, and collectively own 50,000 megawatts of energy capacity. Its natural gas unit serves 1.6 million customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Ohio and Kentucky. The company employs 28,000 people.

Duke Energy is executing an aggressive clean energy transition to achieve its goals of net-zero methane emissions from its natural gas business by 2030 and net-zero carbon emissions from electricity generation by 2050. The company has interim carbon emission targets of at least 50% reduction from electric generation by 2030, 50% for Scope 2 and certain Scope 3 upstream and downstream emissions by 2035, and 80% from electric generation by 2040. In addition, the company is investing in major electric grid enhancements and energy storage, and exploring zero-emission power generation technologies such as hydrogen and advanced nuclear. 

Duke Energy was named to Fortune's 2022 "World's Most Admired Companies" list and Forbes' "World's Best Employers" list. More information is available at duke-energy.com. The Duke Energy News Center contains news releases, fact sheets, photos and videos. Duke Energy's illumination features stories about people, innovations, community topics and environmental issues. Follow Duke Energy on Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook.

Media contact: Ana Gibbs 
Cell: 813.928.7263
Media line: 800.559.3853

SOURCE Duke Energy