We go through a school every year, and when I came up we did a lot more climbing than we do now.A drone that crashed near a Pennsylvania power substation last year was likely meant to damage or disrupt the electric equipment, according to memo. "You have to stay in pretty good shape, because it's strenuous," Duke said. Lineman like Robert Duke, whose been with FPL for decades, says that if debris prevents vehicles from traveling to power poles, workers must resort to climbing power poles with their hands to change out transformers. While many can become absorbed in new and growing technology, many forget the FPL worker who need to get their hands dirty and climb a pole the old fashioned way. Why do FPL personnel need to learn to climb power poles? Jackson said FPL can deploy the EVolution trailer in any type of public emergency as well. "We really look to deploy this before a storm to allow EV drivers to evacuate the state and then also to return post-storm." "This is just one of the latest tools in our toolbox to really support the growing number of EV drivers in the state of Florida," Jackson said. The electric company says their trailer is the first mobile EV charging station in Florida and will provide "on-the-go" charging during evacuations "for the growing number of EV drivers."įPL rate decrease: FPL customers in Northwest Florida to see decreased billsįPL's Project Director of Development Mary Alice Jackson said that the mobile trailer can charge up to six EV's at one time and can provide up to 4,000 miles were of electricity before needing to recharge. If you own an electric vehicle and worry about access to electricity during a storm, then FPL's EVolution trailer has you covered. McLemore says it takes about 40 minutes to fully charge, and can be operated by someone from across the state. "The Drone-in-a-box is a tool we can now deploy right after a storm in some of those hard-hit areas, and we can operate this fully remotely and highly autonomously that we would do with people."ĭrone-in-a-box is electrically powered and has roughly a 35-minute flight time before it needs to be recharged. "The drones today allow us to get into areas that we can't get people, can't get vehicles into to assess what damage has occurred," McLemore said. However, FPL can use what they call Drone-in-a-box to quickly fly down power lines to find any outages. Very, very focused: How FPL's new 350-acre Escambia solar farm serves mission of affordable, reliable power What is FPL's Drone-in-a-box?ĭuring large-scale storms and hurricanes, FPL personnel typically would have to "walk the lines" to find a power outage, taking up multiple man-hours. "It provided really valuable information back to our crews on the ground, so we know exactly when, where and how to send those crews in to restore power faster," he said. McLemore said they used FPLAir One for the first time during Hurricane Ian to see the flooding and damage near Arcadia and Fort Myers Beach. "Think of this as our own storm chaser where we can follow that path of the storm and assess any damage or flooding that occurred from a much higher level and much broader level than we can do with smaller drones." "Some of the huge benefits of this is it has about a 20-plus hour flight time on it," McLemore told the News Journal. The FPLAir One plane can collect real-time data of post-storm damage, which can be sent to FPL's mobile command center used to keep personnel connected and allows FPL to see outages in real time. More storm restoration tech: Drones, mobile cell sites and more take forefront in FPL prep for 2022 hurricane season What is FPL's FPLAir One fixed-wing drone?įPL's fixed-wing drone resembles a small, single rotor airplane, but is a gas powered drone that weighs approximately 1,800 pounds and is used to assess damage caused by hurricanes or large storms, according to FPL's Flight Operations Manager Heath McLemore. Will you bill get cheaper?: Florida Power & Light asks for rate reduction starting in July. Some of the technology FPL uses after large-scale storms includes FPLAir One, Drone-in-a-box and their EVolution trailer. "As Floridians, we know how susceptible our state is to hurricanes, so that's why we prepare year-round for storm season." "Today you have a chance to see some of the technology that we use, and some of these are new to us in Northwest Florida," said FPL Director of External Affairs Jim Bush. Northwest Florida residents are all too familiar with the devastating impacts that hurricane season can bring.įlorida Power and Light officials, however, say they are prepared to keep the lights on in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties as they unveiled cutting edge technology during a press conference Friday. View Gallery: FPL gets ready for hurricane season
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