Electric cooperatives in Louisiana and Mississippi made dramatic progress by Tuesday in restoring power after Hurricane Delta slammed into portions of the Gulf Coast that are still recovering from Hurricane Laura.

More than 120,000 people remained without power Tuesday in Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas, down from more than 800,000 on Saturday. That included about 55,000 co-op consumer-members in Louisiana and Mississippi, down from a high of more than 250,000. Two east Texas co-ops affected by Delta have completed restoration.

Delta made landfall near Creole, Louisiana, about 6 p.m. Central time Friday as a Category 2 hurricane, with winds of up to 100 miles per hour. Louisiana co-ops, still repairing damage from Laura, were hit hardest by Delta as it caused fallen wires, damaged poles and severe flooding. The four Louisiana co-ops still recovering from Delta reported about 46,500 meters without power Tuesday. They had more than four times that many outages on Saturday.

“Hurricane Delta came ashore in already storm-torn southwest Louisiana and moved northeastward through the state, causing damage to all our ALEC member electric cooperatives’ systems,” said Jeff Arnold, CEO of the statewide association. “The Association of Louisiana Electric Cooperatives (ALEC) has once again initialized our mutual-aid network to recruit help from lineworkers from other states to assist in the recovery.”

Beauregard Electric Cooperative Inc. in Deridder and Jeff Davis Electric Co-op in Jennings both lost power to 100% of their meters, just as they did when Laura struck about six weeks ago—affecting 42,800 meters for Beauregard EC and 11,000 for Jeff Davis EC.

By Tuesday morning, Beauregard EC had restored power to 45% of its system and expected to reach 50% by the end of the day, said General Manager Kevin Turner.

“It still seems hard to believe that we have been hit with two major hurricanes in a matter of weeks,” Turner said. “Even though we are dealing with the residual effects of Delta’s rains, in terms of high water and flooded areas, I think we are making great strides in restoring our members quickly. I’m really proud of all the hard work of all of our employees.”

Jeff Davis EC was able to begin restoring power Monday after ramping up manpower from out-of-state co-op crews. The co-op now has more than 700 visiting lineworkers helping them, the same number that came in after Laura hit.

“Today we were able to reach a significant milestone restoring power once again to some consumer-members,” Jeff Davis EC General Manager Mike Heinen said in a press release Monday night. He said the co-op was able to restore nearly 1,300 meters.

“We had to send our additional line crews, from Hurricane Laura, home to keep them out of harm’s way prior to Hurricane Delta,” Heinen said. “However, they have been traveling from their home states to return and continue to help us in our restoration and reconstruction efforts. I’m incredibly grateful for all the extra help we have received.”

Jeff Davis EC and Beauregard EC, with help from other co-op crews throughout the country, were just wrapping up restoration work from Laura when Delta hit.

“Prior to Hurricane Delta making landfall, we had restored power to approximately 75% of our consumer-members,” Heinen said. “Everyone is storm battered and weary, but as soon as the winds subsided, we got back to work assessing the most recent damages. Our consumer-members and employees understand they live in a hurricane prone region, and they are resilient. They will just pick up where they left off and continue the charge.”

In a bit of good news, both Jeff Davis EC and Beauregard EC reported that their systems suffered less overall damage from Delta than from Laura. Beauregard re-energized three of its substations by Sunday and expects to re-energize the rest by Wednesday. New transmission lines and structures that Jeff Davis erected after Laura survived Delta.

“If there is a silver lining to an area getting hit with two hurricanes within a number of weeks, it is that Hurricane Delta did not inflict the same level of devastation to our distribution infrastructure,” said Turner, who expects full power to be restored at Beauregard EC within two weeks. “In Laura, miles and miles of three-phase distribution lines were destroyed. After Delta, many of those lines and poles are still standing.”

More than 100,000 members of Southwest Louisiana Electric Membership Corp. in Lafayette lost power Friday night, but that number had been reduced to 20,745 by Tuesday morning.

“Crews are continuing to work in all areas,” SLEMCO said on its website. “We have hundreds of contract crew members from several different states working side-by-side with our own crews in damage assessment, power restoration and right-of-way tree trimming. Crews are still working on feeders today and beginning to work on smaller outages in some areas, too.”

Dixie Electric Membership Corp. in Baton Rouge told its members Sunday that Delta “has been one of the worst weather events to impact the DEMCO system” since the 2016 flood in the wake of Hurricane Gustav. Early Saturday morning, there were nearly 42,000 meters without power. As of Tuesday morning, co-op crews had slashed that number to 2,092 after welcoming help from Alabama and Florida co-ops. Eight Florida co-ops have sent 55 lineworkers to assist DEMCO, said Alisia Hounshell, director of communications and statewide services at Florida Electric Cooperative Association.

“We will do everything we can to safely restore power to every meter as quickly as possible,” DEMCO CEO and General Manager Randy Pierce wrote in a message to members.

Claiborne Electric Cooperative in Homer finished restoring power Tuesday to all but of a handful of meters after initially sustaining outages to 21% of its system, or 5,000 meters.

In Mississippi, only one of the four co-ops damaged by Delta still had power outages Tuesday. Southwest Mississippi Electric Power Association in Lorman reported 7,937 meters without power, or 31% of its system. On Saturday, four of the state’s co-ops had a total of 50,000 meters without power, but other Mississippi co-ops rushed in to help their hard-hit colleagues, bringing outage numbers down quickly, said Ron Stewart, senior vice president of communications at the Electric Cooperatives of Mississippi.

“We have restored 50% of our system in three days,” Southwest Electric said in a press release. “We have 194 lineworkers spread out across our nine-county service area repairing damage. So far, we have found over 150 broken poles and cross-arms. That is MORE than we had after Hurricane Katrina. The damage is systemwide. Our lineworkers, the contractors and the crews from the seven sister cooperatives are working as fast as possible while keeping the safety of themselves and the public in mind.”

In Texas, Jasper-Newton Electric Cooperative in Kirbyville has restored power to all 4,700 members affected by Delta. Deep East Texas Electric Cooperative initially reported about 2,600 outages but completed its repairs over the weekend. The co-op sent crews to help Beauregard EC in Louisiana.

Erin Kelly is a staff writer at NRECA.

Crews from at least ten Kentucky co-ops gearing up to restore power

In response to a request from an electric cooperative in Louisiana, at least 70 electric co-op employees from Kentucky are joining power restoration efforts after Hurricane Delta brought even more damage to the same area devastated by Hurricane Laura in August.

Delta made landfall late Friday night as a strong Category 2 hurricane and swept through southwest Louisiana. At the peak of the storm, more than 90,000 electric co-op consumer-members across Louisiana were without electricity due to fallen wires, damaged poles, and severe flooding.

“Hurricane Delta came ashore in the already storm-torn southwest Louisiana and moved northeastward through the state, causing damage to all our ALEC member electric cooperatives’ systems,” said Association of Louisiana Electric Cooperatives (ALEC) CEO Jeff Arnold. “The Association of Louisiana Electric Cooperatives (ALEC) has once again initialized our mutual-aid network to recruit help from line workers from other states to assist in the recovery.”

The storm caused substantial damage to the infrastructure at Beauregard Electric Cooperative, where Kentucky co-op mutual aid crews are now heading. All of the co-op’s 42,648 consumer-members lost power—an event seen for only the third time in its 80-year history, including Hurricane Rita in 2005, Hurricane Laura just six weeks ago, and now Hurricane Delta.

Some of the same Kentucky co-ops that deployed crews to Hurricane Sally last month are gearing up for more hurricane relief. In September, 87 crews from twelve Kentucky electric co-ops helped restore power to a co-op in southwest Alabama.

“Our members were so supportive through Hurricane Laura, and I have confidence that we will have that support through this restoration effort as well,” said Kay Fox, vice president of marketing and member services for Beauregard Electric Cooperative. “Our crews will join forces again with other states to restore power as quickly and safely as possible.”

The top priority of each local Kentucky co-op is service to its own consumer-members.  Before committing resources to mutual aid requests, each co-op ensures it has ample crews available for all local needs, including routine maintenance and emergencies.

The list of Kentucky electric cooperatives set to deploy lineworkers includes Cumberland Valley Electric, Fleming Mason Energy, Jackson Purchase Energy Cooperative, Kenergy, Nolin RECC, Owen Electric, Shelby Energy, South Kentucky RECC, Warren Rural Electric and West Kentucky RECC.

Through a careful coordination of mutual aid from co-ops across the Midwest and Southeast, co-op crews are assigned to specific co-ops in need of assistance. On daily conference calls, safety teams from each state assess optimal deployments.

“Even before Delta made landfall, co-op crew members in Kentucky were already communicating that they wanted to help,” said Chris Perry, President and CEO of Kentucky Electric Cooperatives. “By responding to natural disasters in other states, Kentucky co-op crews gain invaluable experience to help them respond to outages here at home. We are praying for the safety of co-op crews and the people they are helping.”

In addition, United Utility Supply Cooperative is responding to Hurricane Delta needs. The Kentucky-based co-op has implemented its storm emergency plan, providing round-the-clock support to meet the material needs of co-ops.

Because the national network of transmission and distribution infrastructure owned by electric cooperatives is built to federal standards, line crews from any co-op in America can arrive on the scene ready to provide emergency support, secure in their knowledge of the system’s engineering.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (September 17, 2020) – In response to a request from an electric cooperative in Alabama, 85 electric co-op employees from Kentucky are joining power restoration efforts after Hurricane Sally hammered the Gulf Coast on Wednesday.

The Category 2 hurricane made landfall early Wednesday in Gulf Shores, Alabama. Moving inland at only about 3 miles per hour, the storm has caused massive flooding and has knocked out power to more than a half-million homes and businesses in Alabama, Florida and Louisiana. Kentucky co-op crews will help restore power to Baldwin EMC, a co-op that serves the area between Mobile, Alabama, and Pensacola, Florida, and includes Gulf Shores and Orange Beach.

More than 78,000 consumer-members of the co-op have lost electric service as a result of the storm. The figure represents 97 percent of the cooperative’s meters. Baldwin has requested at least 1,600 co-op crewmembers to help in the effort.

“Power restoration efforts will begin just as soon as conditions are safe,” said Mark Ingram, Baldwin EMC vice president of corporate services and public relations. He explained that Sally’s strong winds and heavy rains have damaged power lines and equipment. Reports of downed trees and power lines with numerous power poles broken are coming in from across the Baldwin service area. There was also damage to some transmission lines that feed power to the substations and equipment in some locations is under water.

In addition to co-op employees, Kentucky co-ops have already released dozens of construction and right-of-way contract crews to respond to Hurricane Sally, and in recent weeks to Hurricane Laura in Louisiana. Through a careful coordination of mutual aid from co-ops across the Midwest and Southeast, co-op crews are assigned to specific co-ops in need of assistance. On daily conference calls, safety teams from each state assess optimal deployments.

The top priority of each local Kentucky co-op is service to its own consumer-members. Before committing resources to mutual aid requests, each co-op ensures it has ample crews available for all local needs, including routine maintenance and emergencies.

The list of Kentucky electric cooperatives set to deploy lineworkers includes Clark Energy, Cumberland Valley Electric, Fleming Mason Energy, Jackson Purchase Energy Cooperative, Kenergy, Nolin RECC, Owen Electric, Salt River Electric, Shelby Energy, South Kentucky RECC, Warren Rural Electric and West Kentucky RECC.

Photos and video of Kentucky electric cooperative crews gearing up and deploying on Thursday, September 17, 2020 are available at this link.

“Any hurricane response presents long hours in challenging conditions, and the flooding being experienced in Alabama adds yet another complication,” said Chris Perry, President and CEO of Kentucky Electric Cooperatives. “By responding to natural disasters in other states, Kentucky co-op crews gain invaluable experience to help them respond to outages here at home. We are praying for the safety of co-op crews and the people they are helping.”

In addition, United Utility Supply Cooperative is responding to Hurricane Sally needs. The Kentucky-based co-op has implemented its storm emergency plan, providing round-the-clock support to meet the material needs of co-ops. Prior to Sally making landfall, UUS sent supplies to electric co-ops in the storm’s path and ordered additional storm emergency material from manufacturers. A UUS warehouse in Prattville, Alabama is fully staffed and responding as co-ops assess the damage.

Because the national network of transmission and distribution infrastructure owned by electric cooperatives is built to federal standards, line crews from any co-op in America can arrive on the scene ready to provide emergency support, secure in their knowledge of the system’s engineering.

Electric cooperatives along the Gulf Coast are ready to respond to potentially widespread power outages when Hurricane Sally makes landfall by Wednesday morning, bringing a deluge that could cause historic flooding.

Co-ops in Mississippi, Alabama and the Florida Panhandle are expected to be hit hardest.

Sally is “likely to produce extreme life-threatening flash flooding through Wednesday along, and just inland, of the central Gulf Coast from the western Florida Panhandle to far southwestern Mississippi,” the National Hurricane Center warned Tuesday, adding that “historic flooding is possible.” The National Weather Service predicted the hurricane would dump 10 to 20 inches of rain across the region, with isolated spots receiving up to 30 inches.

Ron Stewart, senior vice president of communications at Electric Cooperatives of Mississippi, said the statewide association has been in constant contact with its member cooperatives and the co-ops are prepared to respond after Sally makes landfall. ECM has also been in contact with co-ops in other states in case outside crews are needed to help restore power.

“You never know how bad a hurricane is actually going to be until it hits, but you’ve got to be prepared,” Stewart said Tuesday. “You can’t be caught blindsided.”

For individual co-ops, getting ready for the hurricane means “making sure your vehicles are gassed up and loaded with the necessary equipment needed to restore power,” Stewart said.

“You also try to get word out to your membership to prepare for outages,” he said. “We’re definitely going to have some. And, it’s not safe to dispatch crews during the storm, so it may take some time to restore power. The vast majority of members understand that—they see what’s happening outside. But it never hurts to remind them.”

Widespread flooding could hamper crews after the hurricane has swept through, Stewart said.

“It’s hard to get crews out and about if we’ve got flooded highways and roads—even if the structures are still there.”

Some Mississippi co-op crews just recently returned home from helping Louisiana co-ops restore power after Hurricane Laura. Louisiana co-ops expect to be largely spared by Sally.

“I think the majority of our co-ops should be in the clear,” said Addie Armato, director of member engagement at the Association of Louisiana Electric Cooperatives. “It’s been a sigh of relief; it really has. Our hearts go out to our neighboring states because this is not easy.”

As they continue with post-Laura restoration efforts, Louisiana co-ops will assess whether they are able to send crews to help co-ops in neighboring states, Armato said.

In Alabama, Baldwin EMC in Summerdale activated its disaster response plan Tuesday and had closed its offices as weather conditions worsened.

“We’re currently responding to outages and will continue to do so, weather permitting,” said Mark Ingram, vice president of corporate services and public relations. “As conditions deteriorate, we’ll pull our employees from the field for their safety. As the storm passes, our crews will be ready to restore power again as safely and quickly as possible.”

The co-op has stockpiled additional supplies, including poles, transformers, wire and other essential equipment.

All 22 Alabama co-ops are keeping a close eye on Sally, said the Alabama Rural Electric Association of Cooperatives, citing the National Hurricane Center’s forecast of “dangerous storm surge, hurricane-force winds and flash flooding.” Alabama co-op crews are returning home from Louisiana after helping Beauregard Electric Cooperative Inc. restore power after Laura.

Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey closed the state’s beaches Monday and urged coastal residents to evacuate if possible. She said Alabama is “looking at record flooding.” Sally is expected to make landfall near Mobile Bay early Wednesday and move across central and south Alabama.

In Florida, Escambia River Electric Cooperative is preparing for the potential of major damage to its system.

“Our co-op may be significantly affected by high winds and heavy rainfall if Sally continues to intensify,” said CEO Ryan Campbell. “With safety as our top priority, we have activated our emergency response plan in anticipation of the storm. This includes contact with our statewide association to coordinate the arrival of additional utility crews should they be needed.”

The co-op urged its members to remain vigilant and prepare for possible outages.

“EREC has taken all precautionary measures, and our emergency preparedness team has confirmed that all preliminary requirements for the possibility of a major hurricane have been met,” Campbell said.

Erin Kelly is a staff writer at NRECA.

Safety instructors Randy Meredith, Tony Dempsey and Charlie Lewis introduce us to Warren RECC lineman, George Amos.

Wildfires fueled by strong winds are ravaging western Oregon, destroying small towns served by electric cooperatives, forcing 500,000 people to flee their homes and spurring four co-ops to turn off power at night to avoid sparking new blazes.

More than 30 fires have burned through more than a million acres and killed at least 10 people, according to state officials. Oregon Gov. Kate Brown said at a news conference that the disaster has the potential to be “the greatest loss of human lives and property due to wildfires in our state’s history.”

“I don’t know of anybody who doesn’t have a bag packed in western Oregon, including my family,” said Ted Case, executive director of the Oregon Rural Electric Cooperative Association in Wilsonville. “Everybody is on high alert.”

Case decided to evacuate his home with his family Friday as thick smoke filled his neighborhood from a fire about 15 miles away.

“It looks like Mars outside right now,” he said. “Everything is just red.”

Case said the wildfires have hit four of the state’s 18 co-ops hardest: Consumers Power Inc. in Philomath, Lane Electric Cooperative in Eugene, Blachly-Lane Electric Cooperative in Junction City and West Oregon Electric Cooperative in Vernonia. They have had to perform public safety power shutoffs at night to prevent igniting more fires.

“For those of you who appreciated the fire mitigation efforts we have just made, thank you,” Blachly-Lane officials wrote on their website. “For those of you who didn’t understand the cause of the Public Safety Power Shutoff, we’ll do our best in the coming weeks and months to explain it. We don’t have to look too far to see the devastating effects of fire to communities like ours, and we believe that this is the responsible thing to do. Mother Nature bats last, as they say, and sometimes it’s a curveball.”

The fires or threat of fires caused outages to thousands of the four co-ops’ meters, but they were in the process of restoring them quickly and the number of outages continued to drop, Case said. Hundreds of power poles have been lost. In “one piece of good news out of a whole lot of bad,” Consumers Power saved a major substation by digging a trench around it so flames wouldn’t reach the equipment, he said.

“The fact that it’s still standing is a real victory,” Case said.

However, the tiny mountain town of Detroit, which Consumers Power serves, was destroyed in the huge Santiam Fire, leaving its 200-plus residents without homes.

“That town was just devastated,” Case said.

Blue River, a picturesque town of about 800 people served by Lane Electric, was also reduced to ash and rubble by the separate Holiday Farm fire.

As emergency crews focused on evacuating people and saving lives, the extent of property damage in many places had not yet been determined. Members of co-ops’ operations staff were among those evacuated from their homes.

The Oregon co-ops that haven’t been badly hurt have sent help to the four hardest-hit co-ops, but it’s difficult for them to do as much as they’d like, Case said.

“It’s a challenge just to move around,” he said. “There’s just no ability to access mountain roads. Right now, it’s the fog of war. We just don’t know the extent of damage.”

When the time for recovery comes, help from those other co-op crews will be badly needed, he said.

“It’s going to be an incredible job to rebuild those systems,” Case said.

Meanwhile, farmers are filling the roads with trailers as they try to save goats, horses and other animals from the flames.

“The combination of the strong easterly winds and the dry weather make these fires difficult to contain,” Case said. “The flames are coming at you like a raging river. We still don’t know how many people didn’t make it out alive.”

Erin Kelly is a staff writer at NRECA.

United Utility Supply continues to help other cooperatively owned suppliers after devastating weather in both Iowa and Louisiana.

After the August 10 derecho wreaked $4 billion in destruction in Iowa, UUS supplied several truckloads of much needed transformers and line material for sister cooperatives.

Since Hurricane Laura made landfall August 26th, UUS has been providing materials and assistance to co-ops helping restore power and rebuild the systems of Louisiana cooperatives.

While assisting with disaster relief, UUS has been able to maintain commitments to its membership thanks in part to proactive planning in case of possible delays of materials from manufacturers due to the pandemic.

“Rest assured, our top priority is our member cooperatives and we will not do anything to jeopardize your needs,” says Gary Burnett, UUS Executive Vice-President. “But we stand ready to help other cooperatives in the time of need. Cooperation Among Cooperatives!”

Kentucky Electric Cooperatives continues to communicate with affected cooperatives in Louisiana regarding any potential mutual aid support. More than ten Kentucky co-ops representing about 70 crew members have indicated a willingness to respond, yet affected cooperatives in Louisiana are still assessing their needs.

The peak of the Atlantic hurricane season is almost here, and forecasters are watching four areas for possible tropical development this week as the calendar turns to September. An estimated 71% of hurricane activity is still yet to come. The National Hurricane Center is monitoring four systems, of which two have the highest chances of development. Both a system near the Carolinas and another in the Caribbean have a high chance of becoming a tropical depression.

This year, I have been losing track of days. Have you noticed how every day is starting to feel like a repeat, with the repetitive nature of the news reporting about the coronavirus? I have heard similar comments from several of my friends.

One of the most difficult challenges this year is the uncertainty. In the electric business, uncertainty is inherent with the job. Weather changes from hot to cold, from drought to floods, or from ice storms to tornadoes.

Electric cooperatives are also impacted by the energy used by homes and businesses. Most times, there is a pattern to how electricity is used, but this year that usage is uncertain. This same uncertainty extends to you at home as well as to the businesses and attractions that make up our Best in Kentucky award winners.

Kentucky Living’s Best in Kentucky awards celebrate the great things about our state. I was lucky enough to visit one of our winners, the Dale Hollow Lake Golf Course, shown above, during the pandemic. I want to thank each of you for voting for our winners and continuing the legacy of celebrating the businesses, people and places that are the Best in Kentucky.

However, I want to ask you to do something more for Kentucky. The businesses that are highlighted in this issue continue to face uncertainty. As we move into fall, I am going to visit and do all I can (pandemic restrictions permitting) to help out these places.

We are fortunate that Kentucky has so many great opportunities and scenic spots just a short drive away, which make for excellent day trips that can calm the soul.

Take a drive and spend some time at a state park. Play golf at one of the beautiful courses around the state. Order something good to eat and pick it up before going to a park for a picnic.

I know that every day right now feels like Groundhog Day. I understand that it is hard to stay safe and feel comfortable when visiting places around the state, but it is important that we continue to support the Best in Kentucky.

With social distancing the order of the day, the generations-old annual meeting traditions of electric cooperatives in Kentucky have adopted pandemic safety protocols in 2020.

“Like schools, churches and businesses, each co-op has had to assess how best to operate and engage with its membership at this extraordinary time,” says Chris Perry, president and CEO of Kentucky Electric Cooperatives. “Many co-ops have had no choice but to cancel their annual meeting.”

Members always come first, says Ted Hampton, president/CEO of Cumberland Valley Electric, Gray. “As things became more restrictive across the Commonwealth, we soon realized we could not ensure everybody’s safety at an annual meeting,” he says.

The Warren RECC board, Bowling Green, reached the same decision, “and felt rescheduling for 2021 was the best way to ensure the health and safety of both our members and our employees,” says co-op communicator Kim Phelps, of the 62,000 member co-op, which updated its membership via an annual report published in Kentucky Living.

For some co-ops, the dates and circumstances of their annual meetings have enabled them to safely squeeze in the events between health advisories and state restrictions.

“It was unlike any other annual meeting in our 82-year history,” says Joni Hazelrigg, president and CEO of Fleming-Mason Energy. “In times like these, we must all be flexible and innovative.” The Flemingsburg co-op conducted drive-thru registration, with members staying in their vehicles and listening to the business meeting on the radio.

“Members voted on measures by honking their horns—certainly a unique way of holding a meeting. But in unique times, it worked wonderfully!” Hazelrigg says.

Employees of Grayson RECC, Grayson, braved heavy rain to register members for the co-op’s business meeting, which was presented live on its Facebook page. “I spoke to a couple of members who said they hoped that we would be back to normal next year,” says Grayson RECC Executive Assistant Kim Bush.

As for West Kentucky Rural Electric Cooperative, Maysville, “We researched our options with help from Kentucky Electric Cooperatives and elected to hold a virtual business meeting accessible through our website in conjunction with drive-thru registration events in each of the four counties we serve,” explains co-op President & CEO David Smart. “The feedback from members was positive and they seemed to appreciate our effort to engage safely in spite of the restrictions.”

“Our members were happy to drive through and pick up their buckets and bulbs as usual,” says John May, manager of administrative services at Licking Valley RECC, West Liberty. “Everyone seemed to understand why the annual event was modified.”

Todd Blackburn, marketing and external affairs manager at Meade County RECC, Brandenberg, says its drive-thru meeting turnout was similar to 2019. “Obviously, we all would have preferred a traditional annual meeting, but due to the circumstances, the event was well received.”

Nolin RECC’s social distancing efforts in Elizabethtown included spreading out the length of registration, with 2,600 members registering over a three-day period, followed by a live-streamed business session.

“Overall, both members and employees were very happy with how the new format allowed for an annual meeting that followed current public health guidelines,” says Sarah Fellows, communications manager at Nolin RECC.

Shelby Energy, Shelbyville, lengthened drive-thru registration hours and printed signs requesting members to wear masks and leave their window cracked, with ID ready.

“We wore our masks, too, took shifts and had plenty of hand sanitizer,” says Melanie Crossfield, communications and staff assistant. “We hosted a virtual business meeting on Facebook, over the radio, our website and via Zoom.”

Co-ops that needed to conduct voting implemented online tools that have become commonplace in the pandemic workplace.

“We wanted to ensure our members had access to our meeting and could participate with motions, votes and other business, while also ensuring the safety of everyone involved” says Mike Stafford, vice president of member services at Owen Electric, Owenton. “WebEx Events provided a platform that achieved every goal we had to meet with our annual meeting.”

Throughout the pandemic, co-op managers and staff participated in conference calls with other Kentucky co-ops to share ideas and learn from one another’s experiences.

If restrictions allow, Jackson Purchase Energy, Paducah, plans to apply the lessons learned from other co-ops during its rescheduled annual meeting online September 15.

“For the safety of our employees and members, registration will be held in a drive-thru fashion with members remaining in their vehicles and employees maintaining proper social distancing guidelines,” says Executive Assistant Amy Vick.

“Though Kentucky co-ops share a common purpose and are dedicated to improving the quality of life of the members they serve, each co-op is unique and has had to make a tough call in the best interests of its own members,” Perry said.