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Santee Cooper Preparing for Hurricane Helene

The Santee Cooper Board of Directors has unanimously approved the sale of approximately $460 million in bonds aimed at funding major infrastructure upgrades while refinancing older, higher-cost debt. (CREDIT: Santee Cooper)
Santee Cooper is monitoring the storm and preparing accordingly, according to officials with the power company. (CREDIT: Santee Cooper)

MONCKS CORNER, S.C. โ€“ Santee Cooper team members are making preparations for the anticipated effects Hurricane Helene may have on Santee Cooperโ€™s service territory. Approximately 2 million South Carolinians depend on the state-owned electric and water utility as their power source, either directly or through the stateโ€™s electric cooperatives.
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As of 2 p.m. Wednesday, Santee Cooper went to Operating Condition (OpCon) 4 alert status. This means there is a possible threat to Santee Cooperโ€™s electric system, but effects may be limited or uncertain. At OpCon 4, the utility is primarily:

  • Checking and fueling vehicles, including line trucks.
  • Making sure communications equipment is in proper working order.
  • Taking inventory and procuring supplies as needed, such as utility poles, electric transformers and associated equipment.
  • Securing our facilities and electric infrastructure prior to the projected impact of the storm.

โ€œSantee Cooper is monitoring the storm and preparing accordingly to help us be best positioned to respond to all of our customers across the state,โ€ said Vicky Budreau, Chief Customer Officer. โ€œIf outages do occur, we will begin restoration efforts as soon as we safely can.โ€
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Customers can report outages at www.stormcenter.santeecooper.com or 888-769-7688.