FortisBC crews return home from Turks and Caicos
November 16, 2017
To read our most recent update, click on the date:
- November 6, 2017 – Restoration work complete
- November 2, 2017 – FortisBC crews return home from Turks and Caicos
- October 11, 2017 – Second wave of support in action
- October 2, 2017 – Returning to South Caicos and transitioning to a new team
- September 20, 2017 – Preparing for Hurricane Maria
- September 15, 2017 – Making progress in South Caicos
- September 13, 2017 – Supporting the Island of South Caicos
- September 11, 2017 – Getting a first look at the damage
- September 10, 2017 – Mustering with the 60-person crew at TO
- September 9, 2017 – En route from YVR
- September 8, 2017 – Preparing to leave
Six power line technicians and one supervisor from FortisBC arrived in Turks and Caicos Islands on Sunday, September 10 as part of a 58-person operation crew from Fortis Inc.’s Canadian operations to help restore the Islands’ power to critical infrastructure.
The group was quick to volunteer when Fortis Inc. activated its emergency response plan in anticipation of the hurricane. When Hurricane Irma hit, Turks and Caicos Islands power company, FortisTCI , sustained considerable damage to its system, leaving the majority of its customers without service.
“Our thoughts are with all the people of the Caribbean and our colleagues at FortisTCI as they deal with the aftermath of this storm, and we’re glad to be of service,” says Michael Mulcahy, president and CEO of FortisBC.
This is the first wave of support for counterparts from FortisTCI already working to get the power back on. They are part of a team of power line technicians, design technologists and mechanics from across Canada to help with the initial restoration effort.
“Despite the many unknowns with going into a post-hurricane situation, our crews are ready and committed to help. They bring a great deal of expertise and we’re proud of their commitment,” adds Mulcahy.
With extensive experience in dealing with damage from forest fires and seasonal storms in BC’s back country, FortisBC power line technicians are accustomed to working in difficult terrain and manually clearing downed power lines and equipment. This is invaluable experience as they work to clear transportation routes from power line debris with little infrastructure or heavy equipment on the ground to help.
The Canadian crew is expected to be in the region for three weeks, with the aim of restoring power to critical infrastructure like hospitals and cell towers. They will be followed by a second wave of operations support from Fortis’ U.S. holdings.
“This shows the value of being a part of the Fortis group of companies — we are able to quickly help our sister companies throughout North America and the Caribbean.”
We’ll be posting images and details of our crew’s experience as they become available.
Monday, November 6, 2017 – Restoration work complete
In less than 60 days after Hurricane Irma damaged most of the electricity system in Turks and Caicos, Fortis Inc. has now completed the restoration efforts on the islands. The Fortis response included approximately 250 employees and contract personnel from all Fortis Inc. utilities throughout the United States, Canada and the Caribbean, including the 15 crew members from FortisBC. The whole Fortis Inc team worked in unison to safely and efficiently restore power to the country.
The whole team received a big thanks from the communities in Turks and Caicos; FortisTCI, the electricity provider to the Islands of Turks and Caicos, and Barry Perry, president and chief executive officer, Fortis Inc.
See the restoration work in action
Thursday, November 2, 2017 – FortisBC crews return home from Turks and Caicos
Last week, our FortisBC team returned home after 41 days spent relighting Provo, the main city on the Islands of Turks and Caicos. They made steady progress each day, getting customers back on the grid one by one, restoring restaurants, hotels, schools and homes, from the most affluent neighborhoods to the most impoverished ones.
"We built a lot of line, connected many customers, created a few smiles, and met lots of great people,” said Tom, operations manager, who led the second crew’s effort. “We made a really good push on our final day -- we connected more than 30 customers, four taps and four transformers. When all is said and done, the Fortis team reconnected 97 per cent of Provo.”
The crew faced a number of challenges during their time there -- from equipment and supply issues, heat and pests and the emotional heartbreak that comes from spending time with people in who live every day in unimaginable conditions.
Despite this, the FortisBC team wouldn’t have changed any part of their experience.
“The local community has been so wonderful to our entire team,” said Tom. “We always had people coming up to chat and say hello to us. One woman baked us the most delicious buns we have ever tasted.”
It’s now been just over eight weeks since Hurricane Irma devastated the islands’ electrical system, and with the help of our crews, 97 per cent of power has been restored to customers and it is expected that nearly all power will be restored by the end of this week.
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Wednesday, October 11, 2017 – Second wave of support in action
Last week, the first wave of FortisBC crew members prepared to leave as the new crew landed to provide the next three weeks of support.
The original crew transitioned the restoration work on South Caicos to local FortisTCI crews and their counterparts from Newfoundland Power.
“Everyone is ready to go home. Very long and stressful trip for me but rewarding. Great experience for the crew, I'm very proud of the work they did,” said Dean, operations supervisor.
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| The first FortisBC team received some heartwarming words of appreciation. | ||
The day before they left, they were able to get one more ATM and six additional customers energized, and set 33 more poles bringing their total to 479 poles overall.
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| The first FortisBC crews says goodbye to the local Fortis TCI South Caicos crew. |
The first and second teams met and exchanged notes on October 4 at a dinner with Barry Perry, CEO, Fortis Inc and Eddington Powell, CEO, FortisTCI. | |
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| Eddington Powell, CEO, FortisTCI thanks the crews before they head home. | ||
The new FortisBC crew got to work last Tuesday in the Venetian Road area of Providenciales (Provo), home to a number of beautiful beach homes, including one formerly owned by the famous musician, Prince.
On Wednesday, the FortisBC crew hit their first hiccup when one of their bucket trucks blew a belt and overheated, but fortunately, the mechanic from FortisAlberta was able to find a belt and quickly get the crew going again.
Despite challenges securing materials, tools and trucks, by last Wednesday, the entire Fortis team had restored close to 600 Provo customers.
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The FortisBC crew is now working with a team from Central Hudson in a region called Five Cays, a hard-hit, lower-income area of Provo. The FortisBC crew is eager to get power restored as soon as possible and report that while residents are appreciative of the work they are doing, some are also expressing frustration.
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The crew did take a quick break from a hot day on Friday to hand out some of the FortisBC colouring books and crayons to excited kids and their mothers.
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One of the unique challenges facing the crew in Provo is the landscape. The ground in the area is solid limestone with roads cut into the stone making them a very rough combination of a little dirt and solid rock. The crews are augering holes in the limestone to set poles.
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The crew continues to work upwards of 13 hours daily to set poles and restring lines. As a result, they expect the restoration work in the Five Cays area to be complete within one or two more days.
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| ?Second wave of FortisBC crew members set to depart on October 1. Scott, powerline technician, Oliver; Cam, powerline technician, Oliver; Steve, powerline technician, Creston; Tom, operations supervisor, Kelowna; Eric, powerline technician, Trail; Derek, powerline technician, Kelowna; and David, powerline technician, Kelowna. (Missing: Martin, field designer, Kelowna) |
Monday, October 2, 2017 – Returning to South Caicos and transitioning to a new team
After Hurricane Maria struck the Caribbean and Gulf Coasts, our teams returned to Turks and Caicos on Saturday, September 23 eager to get back to work. The force of Hurricane Maria brought down an additional 50 poles, leaving a total of 500 poles still needing to be repaired across the Islands, along with all the wire.
The FortisBC team continued to make good progress on South Caicos, despite the inherent challenges of receiving equipment over barges, having limited access to bucket and line trucks and working in the extreme heat. The crew has had to put their manual pole climbing skills to practice in their efforts to restore power to the local schools, post office and bank so residents can return to normal life and access cash. A new crew from the overall Fortis team has arrived on South Caicos to take over the work as this crew prepares to return home this week.
The second wave of support will arrive in Providenciales (Provo) on Wednesday. Seven new crew members from FortisBC will join crews from Central Hudson, UNS Energy, ITC, Newfoundland Power, Maritime Electric and Fortis Alberta.
The FortisBC crew consists of one supervisor and six power line technicians from Kelowna, Oliver, Princeton, Trail and Creston. They look forward to finding out their assignment and getting to work after they receive their initial orientation in Provo.
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Wednesday, September 20, 2017 – Preparing for Hurricane Maria
Yesterday was our crew’s last day on the ground until after Hurricane Maria passes through the region. As a safety precaution, today they will leave for Miami, Florida. This will also provide them with some much-needed rest and it will be their first break since they landed early last week. They expect to be back on Sunday and return to work on Monday, weather permitting.
It's tough for the team to leave, they understand how much the islands need electricity to support economic recovery and that restoring power to hotels and homes will help people will return to their normal lives.
The entire Fortis team has been making very good progress. The FortisBC crew has restored power to the water treatment plant, the medical clinic, some customers in the downtown area and their hotel. They are also taking down compromised poles as a safety precaution to avoid these falling during the pending storm. Local crews are also now focusing on hurricane preparedness.
We are organizing a second crew to support the efforts. We expect a few days of overlap to make sure there is a smooth transition to the new crew. We will have an update on the new crew next week.
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Friday, September 15, 2017 – Making progress in South Caicos
The Fortis crews continue to work in sweltering heat and humidity, but despite this, are making huge leaps in restoring power on the Islands. Today, the crews working in Grand Turk will restore the prison and the North Caicos team has stood 20 of 62 fallen poles.
In South Caicos, where team BC is headquartered, plans are underway to get the water treatment facility plant and medical clinic up and running in the next few days.
There are 75 downed poles around the water treatment plant, and the ones that are standing need work. This area alone is estimated to take up to five more days to complete. The teams have been able to make do with the limited supply of equipment available, and are looking forward to their shipment of trucks and supplies early next week.
While there continues to be significant damage to the Island of South Caicos with 1200 customers still without power, headway is being made. The FortisBC crew have been working quickly and were able to get the airport back online (a critical client in case of further evacuations). The hotel is another priority as they have been supplying water to the community while the plant has been down.
“It’s been a very emotional week for our team,” said Dean, Operations Supervisor. “We are highly motivated to continue to help the community, despite the growing list of priorities and the devastating environment the team is working in.”
Check out the post-Irma press conference with Turks and Caicos Islands Government and FortisTCI.
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Wednesday, September 13, 2017 – Supporting the Island of South Caicos
Our BC crews landed on the island of South Caicos on Tuesday and they are now working to restore power to the water treatment plant, medical centre and airport. With clean water in short supply, they also brought much needed clean water for local residents.
After an aerial tour of the area, they knew conditions on the ground would be rough.
Dean, operations supervisor, reports the conditions are poor and they are taking extra precautions to stay safe. They are packing their own food, water and sunscreen. And they’re making sure to stay well hydrated in the heat.
Communications with the crew is now limited, but we were able to get an update from Dean last night.
The ground crew was able to restore power to 20 customers and to stand seven poles. They continue to work on critical infrastructure. They have one bucket truck in operation and are using a backhoe to set poles. Another bucket truck and line truck are expected to arrive early next week by barge, pending weather.
For safety reasons, they have had to disconnect power to several homes. Many of the resident’s houses are badly damaged and power can only be safely restored after an electrician can make repairs. Many likely don’t have the income to pay someone to fix the electricity.
The team is staying at a hotel that’s been badly damaged and there is no air conditioning -- they are going to try to restore this during their off hours so they can have more comfortable living quarters (high humidity and hot temps have made for some very uncomfortable nights).
They are still in good spirits despite everything – it’s very hard on them to see how the community has been affected. They’re cheered on everywhere they go – people are happy to see them on the Island helping get the power back up.
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Monday, September 11, 2017 – Getting a first look at the damage
The team arrived in Providenciales (Provo) from Toronto on Sunday afternoon and were greeted by Eddington Powell, CEO, FortisTCI.
At an initial orientation session on Monday, they learned the extent of the damage. There is an estimated 1,200 poles down and damage as well as almost every distribution line outside of Provo. Several parts of Provo now have power restored, including critical infrastructure, and other Islands have access to limited auxiliary power. The overall repair work is expected to be extensive and may take months.
Extra crew members are being organized to help support the work, and a widespread effort is underway to ship trucks and supplies from UNS Energy Corporation and Central Hudson, FortisBC sister companies on the east coast.
The Canadian team’s first priority will be to make roadways safe in Provo.
 Eddington Powell, CEO, FortisTCI, greets the Canadian crew at the main headquarters. |
 Team Fortis (the crew which landed from Canada and Grand Cayman on Sunday) received an orientation on Monday morning. |
 The Fortis team gets to work sorting supplies and equipment at the FortisTCI main headquarters depot. |
Sunday, September 10, 2017 – Mustering with the 60-person crew at TO
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