On Thursday the 9th of June, a heavy fire leaves power broke out at the main FPL substation in Ocala, and it left thousands without electricity. A resident living close to the substation states that she heard an abrupt explosion coming from the substation shortly after 10 pm. Following that she lost her power, and when she stepped outside, she saw a large fire and tremendous black smoke coming from the FPL substation. The Ocala police department and firefighters have taken control of the catastrophe to effectively respond to the fire. Moreover, they are collaborating with the FPL crew to restore power for over 8 000 (eight thousand customers). No injuries have been reported and the FPL crew is hoping to restore power for residents by Sunday the 12th of June. Officials and Ocala police have confirmed that the cause of the eruption at the substation was a lightning strike.

How are the residents dealing with the power cut?

It has been over 12 hours since the FPL substation exploded. The main concern of the customers now is to have their power restored; hence most customers keep calling the FPL line to get information about how they are planning to assist them in this situation.

Outside of the power outage tension, the residents of Ocala are frustrated because the roads surrounding the erupted FPL substation are closed, which means that they are not able to get to their places of employment. The primary concern of the customers is a lack of safety measures from the FPL. Customers state that the FPL generates sufficient revenue in Ocala as they have over 8 000(eight thousand) consumers. As such, they believe that it is the FPL’s responsibility to install long-lasting electricity cables which will not be disrupted by daily weather occurrences such as lightning.

FPL customers are urging the CEO to apply permanent repairs to their substation as soon as possible, and further apply safety measures to deal with such a disaster innovatively in the future.

What is the power outage impact on local businesses?

Naomi White, local business owner of Serendipity Boutique on Broadway Street mentioned that the power outage is affecting her business negatively because they have lost a day of production, which will result in employees losing their daily wage. White also expressed that Serendipity Beauty has not been thriving in the last few months, thus, the FPL power outage is stressful because the business is now running at a loss. She hopes that the FPL crew works effectively to restore power by the promised date.

“To be honest, FPL was supposed to be at the substation immediately after the explosion because they could have resolved the matter during the night. Now the day has come, and the shop is not functioning, which means that the stock I purchased last weekend is at the risk of

getting spoilt. If FPL does not resolve this issue by Sunday, I will hold them accountable for my stock loss.” Myles Loftin, managing director of the recently opened restaurant, Back Porch Mulberry expresses his thoughts about the power outage.

What is the FPA doing about the power outage?

According to the FPL representative Daniel Ricken, the crew is working efficiently to repair the damaged power lines to restore electricity for the people of Ocala by the promised date. Ricken expressed that he empathizes with the FPL customers during this challenging time,

especially business owners. Since the large fire broke out at the substation, firefighters and the FPL crew have been

present at the scene to resolve the matter. Ricken mentioned that FPL is committed to restoring power as quickly as possible, however, it is important to consider the safety of the FPL crew is in the process, given the damage to the substation. As stated by Ricken, this is the first FPL substation to explode in Florida and result in such heavy fire. They have deployed FPL crew members from all over Florida at the Ocala substation to ensure that they have a team assisting each other during the power restoration process, which could be hazardous in his regard. His concern is that it might be a dangerous experience for the crew, hence he humbly requests the Ocala FPL customers to be patient as the workers’ lives are also at risk. FPL expects to have electricity restored for the Ocala customers by Sunday the 12th of June 2022.

How does one stay safe during the restoration of electricity?

Below are the measures stated by Ricken to promote the safety of their customers during the power restoration process:

• Remain indoors as much as possible to avoid inhaling the smoke from the explosion.

• Do not go to the main substation.

• Do not touch any damaged power line which might be on the road.

• Do not try checking if electricity is back using the house’s main switch box, FPL will inform its customers once power is restored.

Having experienced a substation disaster for the first time, the FPL committee and crew urge customers to put their trust in them, as they are working to the best of their abilities to restore electricity on Sunday the 12th of June 2022. To keep up with any updates from FPL visit www.fpl.com