TNMP, Mutual Assistance Crews Increase Restoration Efforts in Wake of Hurricane Ike

(FORT WORTH, Texas) – TNMP, a provider of electrical transmission and distribution services to approximately 115,000 customers in the Gulf Coast region, this morning dispatched an estimated 700 crew members in an effort to restore power to more of its customers in the Gulf Coast region of Texas.

TNMP and mutual assistance crews sent from other utilities across the region teamed up this morning to continue tackling the damage caused by Hurricane Ike over the weekend and restore power to as many additional customers as possible. As of Tuesday morning, TNMP has successfully restored power to an estimated 51,000 customers, or about 45 percent of TNMP’s residential and business customers. Immediately following Hurricane Ike, 100 percent of the company’s Gulf Coast customers were without power.“TNMP and the mutual assistance crews we now have on the ground constitute the largest restoration crew our company has ever assembled,” said Neal Walker, TNMP vice president of Texas operations.  “We have made great progress so far considering the magnitude of damage caused by Hurricane Ike, and I am optimistic that the experienced crews we have working together in the field can bring us closer to our goal, which is restoring power safely and as quickly as possible to our customers.”

Walker says that crew members hope to restore power to any remaining water and sewage treatment plants in the service area by the end of the day and concentrate on making repairs and restoring power to more customers in the TNMP service area.

TNMP estimates that approximately 64,000 Gulf Coast customers remain without power.  This estimate includes customers in Texas City, Dickinson, League City, Friendswood, Alvin, La Marque, Angleton, Sweeny, West Columbia, Brazoria, Bailey’s Prairie, Hillcrest Village and Holiday Lakes.  The TNMP service area in the Gulf Coast includes customers in Brazoria, Galveston and Matagorda counties.

At this time, TNMP indicates that power has been restored to at least some parts of every community it serves.

TNMP customers with Internet access can view updated outage information by visiting www.tnmp.com.  Customers can contact TNMP by calling its toll-free customer service line, which is (888) 866-7456, to report extreme emergencies as a result of hurricane-related outages. Customers also are asked to be patient, as full restoration of service for most customers isn’t expected for several days.  Full restoration in areas with extensive damage could take up to two weeks. TNMP customers are reminded to use caution in the wake of the hurricane by avoiding all downed lines.  Customers should assume any line seen on the ground is energized and should remain a safe distance away.