Edison Electric Institute announces AES Ohio as an Emergency Response Award recipient
January 13, 2025
AES Ohio, a subsidiary of The AES Corporation (NYSE: AES), received an Edison Electric Institute (EEI) Emergency Response Award. Presented to EEI member companies twice a year, the Emergency Response Awards recognize recovery and assistance efforts of electric companies following service disruptions caused by extreme weather or other natural events. The winners were chosen by a panel of judges following an international nomination process. The awards were presented during EEI’s winter Board of Directors and CEO meeting.
“At AES Ohio, our field crews and support team work tirelessly to keep the power on for our customers every day,” said Tom Raga, President of AES Ohio. “The EEI Emergency Response Award honors their hard work and safety focus when customers need us most. We value efficiency in our restoration efforts, while keeping safety as our top priority. We are grateful for a safe and incident-free recovery for both events.”
AES Ohio experienced two significant weather events on July 14, 2024, and September 27, 2024. A severe summer windstorm with gusts exceeding 60 mph caused significant damage to electric equipment. At the peak of the storm, 16 distribution circuits and one transmission circuit locked out nearly 30,000 customers. Overall, 48,000 customers were impacted. The National Weather Service in Wilmington, Ohio issued a tornado watch. Most outages occurred in Montgomery, Greene, Clinton, Clark, Darke, Fayette, Miami, and Warren Counties. Power was fully restored to all customers within 36 hours.
In early fall, the remnants of Hurricane Helene, with sustained winds at 30 mph and gusts up to 60 mph, affected the AES Ohio service area through the early morning hours. This weather event caused extensive damage to the electrical infrastructure due to numerous downed trees both within and outside the right-of-way, as well as debris on power lines. Crews encountered heavy rain and flooding during the restoration efforts. A total of 136,000 customers were impacted. Hurricane Helene ranks among the top ten storms in AES Ohio's history.
By the numbers:
- 724 field and support personnel involved in accelerating the restoration efforts
- 89 transformers replaced (distribution and transmission)
- 126 poles replaced
AES Ohio acknowledges the assistance provided by the following companies: Eversource (Massachusetts), NIPSCO (Northern Indiana), AES Indiana, Ohio’s Pioneer Electric, Tipp City Electric and Darke Rural Electric Cooperative. The mutual aid network and remote communications with smart meters to verify service allowed us to eliminate the need for field checks, resulting in more timely restoration for other customers facing outages.
“Throughout 2024, America’s electric companies and their dedicated workforce answered the call to help restore power and hope to communities impacted by extreme weather events and natural disasters,” said EEI interim President and CEO Pat Vincent-Collawn. “EEI commends AES Ohio for its efforts to respond safely and efficiently to the aftermath of Hurricane Helene and a severe summer windstorm. AES Ohio and its storm response team are extremely deserving of this well-earned recovery award.”
About AES Ohio
AES Ohio is a subsidiary of The AES Corporation and provides regulated electric utility service to more than 539,000 residential, commercial and industrial customers in a 6,000-square-mile service area in West Central Ohio. Our people operate and maintain more than 1,600 miles of transmission lines, 13,000 miles of overhead distribution lines, 4,500 miles of underground distribution lines and 160 substations feeding 490 distribution circuits.
To learn more about how AES Ohio is accelerating the future of energy, visit aes-ohio.com. Connect with AES Ohio on X, Facebook and LinkedIn.
About Edison Electric Institute (EEI)
EEI is the association that represents all U.S. investor-owned electric companies. Our members provide electricity for nearly 250 million Americans and operate in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. The electric power industry supports more than seven million jobs in communities across the United States. In addition to our U.S. members, EEI has more than 70 international electric companies, with operations in more than 90 countries, as international members, and hundreds of industry suppliers and related organizations as Associate Members.