Storm Causes Damages to DEC Headquarters & Surrounding Area

Delaware Electric Cooperative crews were busy Monday, June 19th following a storm that left roughly 2,000 homes under DEC’s coverage without power.

Crews worked throughout the night, with only four homes remaining powerless as of 9 a.m. this morning. Complete power was projected to be restored by 10am.

Many local homes sustained damages caused by the high winds of the storm. Among them were uprooted and fallen trees, farm buildings such as barns and chicken houses, and irrigation systems.

Additionally, DEC headquarters sustained damages from the storm which included an electrical equipment storage building, two construction trailers, and a fence. Crews are working to remove debris and tree limbs from the work site.

According to Delaware Electric Cooperative President and CEO Bill Andrew, “We are thankful no one was injured during the storm and are lucky the winds struck after normal working hours. The area damaged would have been full of workers during the day. If the storm had hit at 4:00 p.m. instead of 6:15 p.m., employees could have been injured or killed. We’d also like to thank members for their patience as we worked to restore power. The damage to our property did not impact our restoration efforts.”

 

The National Weather Service has confirmed that Monday's storm was an EF0 tornado, the weakest on the scale, reaching wind speeds of 75-85 miles per hour.

 

Attached are some of the  photos of the damage to the Co-op from last night, along with photos of the clean up here at DEC this morning and local homes/farms effected by the storm. For further information and updates from DEC follow us on Facebook and Twitter, or visit our website www.delaware.coop.

 

 Here is a link to our security video showing the high winds at our headquarters last night: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FvhMybbp9tM