Monett Utilities recognized for reliable electric service

Monett’s utility crews have once again received national recognition for achieving exceptional electric reliability in 2023. The recognition comes from the American Public Power Association (APPA), a trade group that represents more than 2,000 not-for-profit, community-owned electric utilities.

APPA helps electric utilities track power outage and restoration data through its subscription-based eReliability Tracker service. Once per year, APPA’s Reliability Team compares this data to national statistics tracked by the U.S. Energy Information Administration for all types of electric utilities.

“It’s encouraging to see year after year that public power’s track record for providing highly reliable service is backed up by data,” said APPA Director of Research and Development Paul Zummo. “These utilities are the best of the best when it comes to keeping the lights on. And these communities should be proud of their local power providers and appreciate the hard work that goes into earning this recognition.”

Nationwide, the average public power customer has their lights out for less than half the amount of time that customers of other types of utilities do.

“We are proud to receive this recognition,” said Monett Utilities Superintendent Skip Scahller. “It is a testament to the hard work of all our staff to ensure that we keep Monett powered.”

Crews with Monett’s Electric Department serve nearly 5,000 customers throughout the city. When a power outage is reported, city crews have an average response time of 52 minutes, placing it among the top performers in the state.

In fact, Monett Utilities crews have earned recognition from the APPA every year since 2018, and the team continues to work towards improving services.

Sixty percent of Monett’s power outages are caused by squirrels. To reduce the number of squirrel-related outages, Monett Utilities crews have installed four to five “trip savers” on powerlines each year. Trip Savers, rather than tripping a breaker, will “blink” power on a line, giving squirrels or other animals an opportunity to disengage from the line before tripping the breaker. If the trip saver “blinks” multiple times and continues to sense a disruption, the breaker will trigger, causing an outage. Schaller said the trip savers have had great results in areas where squirrel-related outages have been common. He also said the crews can see when the savers “blink,” so they know they are preventing outages.

Crews have also installed squirrel guards substations to prevent outages there.

For more information on the Monett Utility Department and its commitment to reliability, visit Monett, MO (revize.com)