Hurricane, Storm
Describing the series of hurricanes and the ensuing flooding that hit the southern region of the U.S. late last summer, most people use phrases like "unprecedented flooding," "unspeakable tragedy" and "unimaginable devastation."
Another accurate phrase to describe the storms is "a learning experience."
When Hurricane Irma hit the state of Florida, Eric Silagy, president and CEO of Florida Power and Light Co., undeniably learned the importance of technology.
"All of our customers have smart meters, a device that attaches to each home," Silagy said. "We've learned that big data can actually provide information in real time, even as it's getting ready to go offline."
Silagy said this smart technology provided information "down to a specific home or transformer that was starting to fail."
Addressing delegates in a session titled "Managing Through Natural Disasters: What Is the New Learning?" at CERAWeek by IHS Markit, held recently in Houston, Silagy said Florida Power and Light also deployed 49 drone teams to the field to assess damage to customers.
"As soon as the winds got below 35 miles per hour, they were flying drones," he said. "In certain areas, that made a huge difference for us in being able to cut time out of the [restoration] process.
"We can more accurately and more rapidly deploy resources as soon as it's safe," Silagy said, emphasizing "every hour counts."
"This technology [of smart meters] is so important. They can literally go and target homes in particular neighborhoods," added Sylvester Turner, mayor of the City of Houston.
"[During Hurricane Harvey], we didn't want to turn off the power to everybody, because not all homes were flooded," Mayor Turner said.
Smart sensor devices in individual homes helped determine where power should be shut off in specific areas, so as not to endanger residents and first responders as homes began to flood.
Bouncing back
Hurricane Harvey deluged Motiva Enterprises with more than five feet of water, forcing a shutdown. But Motiva President and CEO Brian Coffman said the refinery resumed operations "within a matter of weeks to begin fueling the country again."
One of the things that helped Motiva prepare and deliver fuel to its customers and stations, Coffman said, was setting up offsite contingency or "business interruption" task teams off the Gulf Coast before the storm hit.
"We had two different locations that were involved in coordinating fuel needs across the system," Coffman said.
As the Houston area continues to recover from the devastation of Hurricane Harvey, Mayor Turner stressed the importance of continuing to develop and maintain the city's infrastructure and transportation mobility system.
"We have to take a much more holistic approach and recognize that we're dealing with the new norm," he said.
Mayor Turner expressed sincere gratitude to the energy sector for "stepping up" with huge contributions to help restore the city.
"In one community, our oil and gas companies are repairing and rebuilding 300 homes," he said. "The local relief fund from the city and the county generated more than $13 million. Many of those dollars are coming from the energy sector.
"I want to thank energy sector companies for being a positive and productive partner with the City of Houston. We recognize [energy's] importance to the city. We all need to work in collaboration to be more resilient. And we still want you to come to the c ity of Houston to invest your dollars, so don't you dare go anyplace else!"
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