LITTLE ROCK (KATV) — Entergy Arkansas is taking proactive measures to ensure they are ready for severe weather events, such as the snowstorms in January, or the dangerous thunderstorms and tornadoes of 2023.
Christopher Darden, Director of Regional Distribution Operations at Entergy, emphasized the company’s commitment to monitoring weather conditions and preparing for power restoration. “We are always monitoring the weather.”
On Monday, linemen were gearing up for the chance of severe weather, making sure their materials were stocked and tools were ready so they could quickly respond in the chance the storms hit Arkansas.
“Even this morning we are having calls, we are discussing everything. Just talking through, ‘Hey, what does the weather look like? These guys right now, you can hear all of the noise in the background, they are preparing,” Darden said.
Central Arkansas has experienced significant storms, including the one on March 31, 2023, which resulted in hundreds of downed power lines and left nearly 57,000 customers without power.
Darden noted that the restoration process took about four days, which he described as “a very good restoration across town especially with the amount of poles and damage that we saw all across the state.”
In response to the damage, Entergy has rebuilt facilities to be more resilient. “Some of our facilities that we put back in the ground, they are more resilient facilities to help us on a day to day basis so if that storm comes back through, we don’t want those facilities to be impacted again,” Darden said.