SAN ANTONIO – CPS Energy crews headed to Lawton, Oklahoma, on Tuesday morning to help restore power to homes left in the dark after winter storms pummeled the state with ice, sleet and wind.
The electric utility sent 12 bucket trucks with a dozen lineman, 15 trainees, foremen, mechanics and a construction manager.
"It's a lot of climbers. They have to go out there, and they have to actually physically climb depending on if it's in backyards, etc., so they might not to be able to work off of their bucket trucks," saod David Luschen, director of service and maintenance for CPS Energy's eastern service district. "It's a lot of hard work repairing the cross arms, picking the wire up and putting it back up. For our own customers here in San Antonio, they will go out in the middle of the night, bad weather during the storm, and if you have a pole top down, you know cross arms down and wires down, we'll do it here."
American Electric Power asked for help in Lawton on Monday. Within two hours, CPS Energy had nearly three dozen volunteers signed up to help.
AEP will fix the transmission lines downed by wind. CPS crews will work on the distribution system that feeds houses.
Crews will be in Oklahoma for at least three to five days, but it could be longer.