Company Urges Customers to Get Ready Now
Hurricane season starts today, and Tampa Electric has been working all year to strengthen its system in advance of any severe weather.
“We work year-round to keep our system ready for storm season – from trimming trees along thousands of miles of power lines to installing power lines underground,” said Chip Whitworth, vice president of Electric Delivery for Tampa Electric. “Our goal is an even more coordinated, more efficient storm response with fast restoration.”
In 2025, Tampa Electric:
- Trimmed trees and other vegetation along 3,700 miles of power lines.
- Installed 77 miles of power lines underground.
- Reduced momentary flickers by 47 percent, in areas where self-healing technology has been installed.
- Strengthened or replaced more than 2,300 power poles or structures.
The company recently moved its energy control and storm-response operations inland, away from potential storm surge and flooding. The facility is built to withstand a Category 5 hurricane and houses critical functions, enabling employees to quickly respond to emergencies.
Tampa Electric's Storm Protection Plan (SPP) helps to strengthen the system to better withstand extreme weather events, such as hurricanes. These efforts include putting power lines underground, strengthening power poles, elevating substation equipment and trimming trees to reduce storm-related impacts. Today, over half of Tampa Electric’s 12,000 miles of power lines are underground.
The company continues to install self-healing technology that automatically identifies problems impacting power lines and reroutes electricity around them – much like GPS systems reroute traffic around accidents. This minimizes the number of customers affected by an outage and shortens restoration.
The company encourages all customers to get prepared now, too. Go to TampaElectric.com/StormCenter to find essential electric safety tips, power restoration information and answers to key questions about storms and your electricity.
Tampa Electric, one of Florida’s largest investor-owned electric utilities, serves about 870,000 customers in West Central Florida. Tampa Electric is a subsidiary of Emera Inc. (NYSE: EMA)