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In Cooperation


OAEC Mutual Aid Plan utilizes the co-op family to coordinate swift restoration of safe, affordable and reliable electricity


By Hayley Leatherwood “ C


oming together is a beginning. Keeping together is progress. Working together is success,” according to Henry Ford, historical business leader and developer


of the assembly line.


In the spirit of working together, the Oklahoma Association of Electric Cooperatives (OAEC) has created a plan asserting each participating coop- erative’s pledge to aid one another in times of crisis and assemble to ensure the restoration of safe, affordable and reliable electricity. “Tornadoes, ice, wind, wildfi res—certainly, we have our share of natural disasters,” Kenny Guffey, OAEC director of safety and loss control says. The OAEC Mutual Aid Plan exists to provide co-ops the peace of mind knowing there will be assistance in times of need. Guffey serves a coor- dinating role within OAEC along with Sid Sperry, OAEC’s director of public relations, communications and research. “Before the plan was implemented, co-ops had to coordinate equipment and crews all on their own while managing a crisis situation,” Sperry says. “Now there’s a way to better position co-op assets through a central source—and that’s OAEC.” Guffey says three cooperatives—Kay Electric


Cooperative, Inc., based out of Blackwell, Okla.; Cimarron Electric Cooperative, Inc., based out of Kingfisher, Okla.; and Alfalfa Electric Cooperative, Inc., based out of Cherokee, Okla.— are among the fi rst co-ops to offer help.


Counting on the Co-ops Kay Electric Cooperative remembers what its


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Oklahoma rural electric cooperatives sent crews to help restore power following Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Photo courtesy OAEC


employees refer to as the “mother of all ice storms” back in 2002. Without the mutual aid from more than 350 linemen following the weather event, David Reser, director of opera- tions, says power would not have been restored as quickly and safely. “That is what the co-op philosophy is all about,” Reser says. “I will never forget the help we received. Because of that, I will always say ‘Call me fi rst, we’ll be able to help.’” OAEC’s Guffey will reach out to local co-ops from the start of a disaster, sometimes before, to fi nd out how many crews affected co-ops might need and the type of crews needed—construction, maintenance, right-of-way or any desired combination. The disaster response depends on the type of


disaster encountered, according to Sperry. Many would think tornadoes cause the most damage.


Mutual aid crews work together to restore power in Oklahoma Electric Cooperative service territory following tornado damages in 2013. Photo by James Pratt


Although those storm systems are certainly de- structive, Sperry says the worst weather events for electric cooperatives are ice storms. “The footprint of an ice storm covers such a huge area,” Sperry says. “Often multiple counties will be designated as qualifying for FEMA disas- ter assistance.” The majority of rural electric systems cover multiple counties and the service territories are exactly that: rural. Crews encounter diffi culties, especially attempting to drive down roads with few members per mile. Kay Electric Cooperative Manager Tim Rodriguez says co-op linemen are consistently comfortable with this environment. “These crews are very reliable,” Rodriguez says.


“We build our systems similarly, they understand how we operate and the linemen know the value of the member. That’s one of the reasons I’ve worked in cooperatives for 30 years. People reciprocate.” Reser says the Mutual Aid Plan is a piece of the


“great philosophy” of a co-op business structure. When lending aid, the co-op operates with a re- duced force of personnel and equipment in order to help the system in need. In his experience, most co-ops have the same reliable work ethic from lineman to lineman. “They may be out in the middle of nowhere, but co-op crews are as dedicated to get the mem- ber on at the end of the line as they are the fi rst on the line,” Reser says.


Saving Time and Money


Often there are only two consumers per mile of line in service territories like Alfalfa Electric Cooperative. The expense to restore power to each member can be costly.


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