On Sunday, May 19th, a powerful storm blew through Kansas, affecting many different communities throughout the State. Among the hardest hit were customers of the Kansas City BPU.
On Monday, the management at McPherson BPU received a request from the Kansas Municipal Utilities, who manage the Kansas Mutual Aid Program for Utilities (KSMAP). They were asked if McPherson could deploy a crew and equipment to assist in the power restoration for North Kansas City residents. McPherson’s electric-intensive industrial base ensures that their crews are well-qualified and capable of handling the complexity of the Kansas City BPU system, making their contribution significant.
The McPherson BPU mobilized within two hours and sent five linemen: Dylan Demel, Byron Shaw, Johnny Jarvis, Logan Fredrick, and Colton McFerrin (three Journeyman and two Apprentices) along with two bucket trucks to Kansas City. On Tuesday at 6 am, the guys began their day under the threat of a tornado warning; thankfully, it was only rain, which the crew could work through. They put in 16-hour days with a small crew from Ottawa on Tuesday and Wednesday before heading home to McPherson on Thursday Morning. Since the alleyways were too narrow or nonexistent in much of the area they were repairing, they couldn’t utilize the bucket trucks and had to physically climb the poles. It is estimated they restored close to 100 customers’ power in those two days. “I enjoy working in storm situations; restoring power to customers after an outage is extremely satisfying,” stated Dylan Demel, McPherson BPU Crew Chief.