Caribbean Utilities Company is making preparations for the upcoming hurricane season, learning from 2004’s Hurricane Ivan and bracing for another storm of that magnitude.
“Hurricane Ivan taught us that our investment in robust infrastructure, a programme that began following Hurricane Gilbert in 1988, was successful,” said CUC spokesperson Pat Bynoe-Clarke.
“The engine rooms that were built post-Gilbert were elevated to above the flood plain and constructed for 150 mile per hour winds and suffered little damage in Ivan,” she said. “The indoor substations and concrete poles also suffered little damage. The engine rooms that were built prior to Gilbert and had to be rebuilt following Ivan were built to a higher standard.”
CUC has installed several concrete poles for operations stability in a potential major storm.
“Prior to Ivan, concrete poles were installed from Bodden Town to Frank Sound and from Batabano to our Hydesville substation in West Bay,” Ms Clarke said. “Since Ivan, we have installed concrete poles from Frank Sound to Rum Point. Both West Bay and the Eastern districts now have a secure submarine cable/concrete pole circuit supply which should shorten the restoration period to these districts following a hurricane.”
CUC has a procedure in place in case of a catastrophic storm.
“Hurricane preparedness is a year round activity,” Ms Clarke said. “However, at the beginning of every hurricane season, CUC conducts a dry run of its hurricane preparedness plan, which is activated in stages.”
The first stage is declaration of alert, followed by watch, warning, and restoration/all clear.
“Each section provides guidelines for various stages of preparation and action,” she said. “Our main objective on the approach of the hurricane is for staff to secure the company’s property and equipment as soon as possible so that they may leave work in good time to take care of their personal property and families.”
Essential staff remains in the control room and hurricane centre during the hurricane and ensure an orderly shutdown of the electricity system, if necessary, for safety reasons.
The utilities company has strategic alliances with overseas companies to supply technical support, labour and key material items such as bucket trucks, transformers, poles, hardware and conductors. These agreements are reaffirmed prior to the start of the season and the companies are put on notice once a hurricane threat is imminent as they may be called upon to respond after the passing of the storm.
The strategic alliances also include arrangements for emergency crews to be deployed from utilities in Canada, the USA and the Caribbean region. CUC will be able to request assistance from its single largest shareholder, Fortis Inc., which has utility companies across Canada and in the Caribbean as well other companies in North America and the regional electricity association, CARILEC.
The company also contacts its local contingency partners to reconfirm arrangements for such eventualities as accommodation for overseas crews, food, water, transportation and many other supplies that may be required.
CUC’s corporate communications department is responsible for providing public promotion of hurricane tips that will help to guide customers in their preparedness efforts. This information is included in all hurricane handbooks and newspaper supplements, as well as commercials on TV and radio.
The company also issues customer advisories when a storm threat is likely to remind them of the potential loss of service and to make preparations.
The advisories remind customers to avoid downed power lines during high winds and after the storm, especially as it relates to flooding of their homes, which could potentially result in electrical shocks, electrocution or fires.
Downed power lines should be reported to 911 and people should stay as far away as possible to avoid injury or death.
Equipping Grand Cayman to handle a major storm
In the early 1990s, CUC established its hurricane-grade construction standards requiring its infrastructure to sustain high winds and flooding.
The company builds its overhead transmission power lines using concrete poles to withstand 115 mph winds, installs pad-mounted transformers five feet above flood plains and designs buildings to withstand 150 mph winds with gusts up to 200 mph and a 10 to 15 foot storm surge.
Such systems can better sustain storms and suffer less damage. For example, only six of 226 concrete poles were replaced after Hurricane Ivan and it was determined that five of these were downed by a tornado.
Wooden poles are also able to weather a fierce storm. The company says that as a result of stringent guying standards, only 500 of its 12,236 wooden poles were destroyed during Ivan.
Furthermore, in 2002, CUC completed the installation of transmission submarine cables, which run from the Power Plant on North Sound Road across the North Sound to the Rum Point sub-station (Eastern Loop) and from the Power Plant to Morgan’s Harbour in West Bay to the Hydesville sub-station (Western Loop).
This loop system allows CUC to reroute electricity to areas not affected by outages while isolating areas that are affected by outages.
In the event of a hurricane, CUC says it will continue to supply power as long as possible. When the winds reach hurricane force, the power plant is shut down for the duration of the storm in the interest of public safety.
Immediately following the passing of a major storm, the committee assigns a restoration coordinator who organises an assessment of the damages sustained and develops a plan for restoring service to customers as quickly and safely as possible. The coordinator also liaises with the National Hurricane Committee to ensure critical infrastructure is addressed first and reports back to senior management.
CUC provides its employees with a hotline for updates during and after the passing of a storm, telling them when it is deemed safe for them to return to work.
Employees are also briefed on personal preparedness and are kept up to date on the status of any storm which may pose a threat.
CUC’s customers keep up to date on restoration work through the media.
Immediately following the passing of a storm, CUC managers contact their employees to determine their individual needs and availability to report for duty, and strategic alliances partners are notified if their services are required.