BOCA RATON — Florida Power & Light Company is continuing its infrastructure-strengthening initiatives in the City of Boca Raton and is on track to complete key improvements as part of its long-term reliability and storm preparedness plan.
By the end of this year, FPL will have inspected some 1,000 utility poles, cleared vegetation from some 240 miles of power lines and used advanced infrared technology to examine 15 main power lines in and near Boca Raton.
“We’re committed to delivering exceptional reliability while continuing to provide our customers with the lowest typical bill in the state,” said FPL External Affairs Regional Manager Ethel Williams.
FPL customers can visit www.FPL.com/maps and enter their street address to see a detailed map of improvements in their neighborhoods. This online tool shows FPL’s system improvements and investments – including pole inspections, line clearing, power line strengthening and power line inspections – at the level of the individual power lines serving neighborhoods within Boca Raton.
Following the 2004–2005 hurricane seasons that saw seven storms in a 15-month period, FPL responded to the state’s call to maintain a high level of storm preparation. FPL embarked on a series of comprehensive investments and improvements to strengthen its electrical infrastructure to better withstand the impact of severe weather. The work is also designed to further reduce customer outages through aggressive preventive maintenance on its power lines and equipment.
Once the 2011 upgrades are completed, FPL will have made the following improvements and investments benefiting the city of Boca Raton since 2006 as part of its comprehensive strengthening program:
• Upgraded and strengthened several main power lines serving critical and community facilities in and near Boca Raton, including Boca Raton Regional Hospital, West Boca Medical Center, Delray Medical Center, Bethesda Memorial Hospital and North Broward Medical Center. FPL has completed strengthening the electrical infrastructure serving every existing major hospital and acute care facility in its service territory and 66 percent of all 911 facilities and emergency operations centers.
• Inspected approximately 11,050 utility poles for strength and health – 79 percent of the approximately 14,000 poles in Boca Raton – reinforcing them and replacing them as necessary. The company remains ahead of its long-term inspection schedules for its system of more than 1 million distribution poles and 65,000 transmission structures.
• Cleared vegetation along some 1,180 miles of power lines in Boca Raton. Tree limbs, branches, palm fronds and other plants that come into contact with power lines are among the most common causes of power outages and flickers. In 2011 alone, FPL plans to clear vegetation along more than 12,000 miles of distribution power lines throughout its service territory.
• Inspected 83 main power lines in and near Boca Raton using advanced infrared technology to detect and address issues in power lines and equipment before they become problems or outages.
Across its service territory, FPL has cleared vegetation from more than 60,000 miles of power lines and inspected more than 660,000 utility poles since 2006. The company has also strengthened 284 main power lines serving critical and community facilities such as hospitals, police and fire stations, and 911 communication centers.
FPL’s has reduced the average number of power outages its customers experience by more than 30 percent over the past four years.