Thank you for weathering the storm with us.
The Memorial Day weekend storms brought hurricane-force winds and tornadoes to our service area and impacted more than 200,000 customers, downed more than 2,000 power lines, broke over 275 utility poles, felled countless trees, and, tragically, took the lives of five Kentuckians. This was the fourth most impactful storm for our utilities over the last 20 years.
The widespread destruction created a multi-day restoration event for our employees, and we appreciate your patience, understanding and incredible displays of gratitude toward our employees and business partners throughout it all.
We recognize the strain and inconvenience being without power has on families and businesses, and that is why we prepare year-round for severe weather events.
Ahead of weather events, like the most recent Memorial Day weekend storms, we closely monitor the forecast, and our employees and business partners implement emergency preparedness procedures.
As rounds of severe weather tore through Kentucky on May 26 and into the early morning hours of May 27, we mobilized resources from our 40 crew centers across the state and more than 700 lineworkers from neighboring states to the communities where they were needed most.
In total, more than 1,200 lineworkers worked around the clock to protect the public, assess and repair damage and safely restore power.
Within 48 hours of the severe weather event, power was restored for more than 75 percent of our affected customers.
In the hardest-hit areas, including pockets of neighborhoods in Louisville and areas in western Kentucky, restoring power took longer due to heavy damage that required lengthy repairs, often in hard-to-reach areas.
I especially want to thank our customers in those areas for their understanding.
Again, thank you for your patience as we worked to safely get the lights back on following the destructive storms that affected so many of the communities we are proud to serve.
Sincerely,
John R. Crockett III
President of LG&E and KU Energy LLC and Senior Vice President and Chief Development Officer, PPL Services Corporation
