MidAmerican storm response crews relocate to Asheville area to help with hurricane recovery

MidAmerican is assisting Duke Energy with repairing catastrophic grid damage in North Carolina

DES MOINES, Iowa - (October 2, 2024) - The MidAmerican Energy storm response team that assisted with restoring power to Ohio customers who lost service due to the remnants of Hurricane Helene has moved to the Asheville, North Carolina, area to support hurricane recovery efforts there.

Late Monday, MidAmerican employees completed two full days of power restoration assignments in Hamilton, Ohio, near Cincinnati.

Early Tuesday, Duke Energy requested the MidAmerican team, comprised of more than 70 employees, including 60 lineworkers, plus safety and support staff, to relocate to Asheville. MidAmerican crews arrived there Tuesday night and began working on assignments early today.

In Asheville, Duke is coordinating around-the-clock power restoration efforts following historic damage caused by Helene. The damage is so extensive, according to Duke, that some parts of the region's electric grid are beyond repair and must be completely rebuilt. Additionally, some of the hardest-hit outage areas are inaccessible due to flooding, mudslides, blocked roads and damaged bridges.

While Duke has restored more than 1.5 million customers in the Carolinas as of Tuesday afternoon, hundreds of thousands in the two states remain without electricity due to catastrophic damage.

"Our hearts go out to the countless number of people who are suffering because of the historic hurricane damage," Nick Nation, MidAmerican senior vice president of delivery, said. "MidAmerican employees who are working in Asheville will do everything they can to help restore electricity as swiftly and as safely as they can. I'm proud of our employees for extending a helping hand to people who need it most."

"I know this will be an extremely difficult assignment for our team. But I also know they're up to the challenge," Jason Ewers, MidAmerican vice president of distribution, said.

It's not yet known when MidAmerican crews will return home.

About MidAmerican Energy
MidAmerican Energy, headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa, serves 820,000 electric customers in Iowa, Illinois and South Dakota, and 797,000 natural gas customers in Iowa, Illinois, Nebraska and South Dakota. Information about MidAmerican Energy is available at midamericanenergy.com and company social media channels.