When severe weather is in the forecast, many of us turn to local television meteorologists for updates and explanations. That’s why the Indiana Michigan Power team held a special informational session for those meteorologists on December 9, with the goal of educating them on how we prepare for winter storms.
How do our meteorologists develop their forecasts? What are the indicators that a weather event might impact I&M’s ability to provide power to customers? How do our crews prepare for weather events, and how does winter weather affect crews’ ability to restore power?
These questions and more were addressed by a panel of experts from I&M and American Electric Power (AEP), I&M’s parent company. The panel for the event included Meghan Klee, AEP’s meteorology manager, Scott Huebner, who is a distribution manager for I&M’s Fort Wayne service area, and Scott Bennett, who oversees I&M’s response to weather events. The conversation was moderated by- Stephanny Smith, I&M’s director of communications.
Klee was able to share her process for developing forecasts with the local meteorologists participating in the session. During winter weather, she is looking for elements such as high winds, ice accumulation, and wet, heavy snow. All of those have the potential to impact I&M’s equipment. Klee also explained that unlike summer storms, winter storms usually develop over several days.
This longer timeline provides Huebner and his frontline team time to prepare. That includes getting trucks ready, moving equipment to the areas it might be needed most, and ensuring I&M has sufficient staffing in place for restoration efforts, including employees, contractors, and crews from other areas.
If severe weather does hit and results in power outages, Bennett oversees I&M’s Incident Command Structure (ICS). The purpose of ICS is to bring key teams together to discuss restoration efforts, resources, and to ensure that we are communicating about the situation with our employees and customers.
“Our goal is to make sure that we are educating as many people as we can about about how we approach severe weather and restoration efforts. Our hope is that in the event of winter storms, those meteorologists who participated in the session will help us inform their viewers,” Smith said.