As some frontline workers return home, CenterPoint Energy continues providing mutual assistance support for restoration efforts following devastating hurricanes

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Oct 17, 2024, 11:22 ET

Operations leadership remains in Florida to support ongoing efforts as restoration continues in the hardest-hit areas

HOUSTON, Oct. 17, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- CenterPoint Energy is proud to have answered the call from its peer utilities on the East Coast to provide mutual assistance support following the impacts of Hurricanes Helene and Milton. For the last month, at peak, approximately 350 CenterPoint leadership, frontline workers and contractors have been in Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas providing mutual aid assistance in some of the hardest-hit regions. Over the course of both hurricanes, CenterPoint workers and contractors repaired scores of poles, transformers and spans of wire, which helped restore power to thousands of residents in multiple states.

CenterPoint Energy crews return to Houston after spending two weeks supporting mutual assistance efforts in response to Hurricane Helene.

As the frontline workers who've been working to repair and replace damaged electric infrastructure make their way home to Houston and Evansville, Indiana, a few members of CenterPoint's Houston electric operations leadership team will remain in Florida to continue providing logistical support for ongoing restoration efforts.

"At CenterPoint, we are always proud to step up and provide support for those who need it most. Mutual assistance is a hallmark of our industry. We're proud of the groups of team members who answered the call to support power restoration in the wake of Hurricane Helene, and we look forward to welcoming home the team returning from Hurricane Milton response efforts," said Darin Carroll, Senior Vice President of Electric Business.

"We also want to thank the leaders from our Houston electric operations team who are remaining in Florida on the ground to continue helping to coordinate mutual assistance response efforts," Carroll continued. "These leaders have been pitching in since before Helene hit by helping with planning and preparedness efforts, and we are so grateful for their dedication and perseverance."

Hurricane Preparedness Resources
CenterPoint remains prepared and ready to respond to any operational needs in our electric service territories in Houston and Evansville through the 2024 hurricane season, which runs for the next several weeks through the end of November. For additional information on hurricane preparedness, customers can visit CenterPointEnergy.com/StormCenter.

Greater Houston Resiliency Initiative
In addition, through the company's Greater Houston Resiliency Initiative, CenterPoint is taking action across its Houston-area service territory to improve resiliency, customer communications and community partnerships, and better prepare for the next major storm or hurricane. During the first phase of the initiative, in August, CenterPoint crews and contractors installed more than 1,100 stronger and more resilient fiberglass poles, trimmed vegetation along more than 2,000 miles of power lines and installed more than 300 automation devices in neighborhoods all over Houston. The company's next step is taking the boldest series of resiliency actions in its nearly 160-year history, including additional system hardening, strategic undergrounding, self-healing grid technology, and further enhancements to its outage tracker.

About CenterPoint Energy, Inc.
As the only investor-owned electric and gas utility based in Texas, CenterPoint Energy, Inc. (NYSE: CNP) is an energy delivery company with electric transmission and distribution, power generation and natural gas distribution operations that serve more than 7 million metered customers in Indiana, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Ohio and Texas. With approximately 9,000 employees, CenterPoint Energy and its predecessor companies have been in business for more than 150 years. For more information, visit CenterPointEnergy.com.

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SOURCE CenterPoint Energy