WPS crews travel to Florida ahead of hurricane to assist in relief efforts

GREEN BAY, Wis. (WSAW) – More than two dozen Wisconsin Public Service (WPS) workers are hitting the road Wednesday morning to assist Florida utilities as Hurricane Milton bears down on the state.

The crews are responding to a call for help as Florida utilities prepare for power outages and storm damage.

Joining the WPS crews will be approximately 25 workers from the company’s sister utility We Energies. The We Energies crews left from Racine on Wednesday morning to head to Florida.

“I think it shows a great deal because the conditions won’t be that great for us,” WPS Line Electrician in Stevens Point Chad Ellis said. “We’ll be away from home for two weeks minimum. There’s no shortage of volunteers when something like this comes up. There’s always a waiting list of guys who want to go.”

Late last month, about 100 WPS and We Energies contract workers were sent to help utilities restore power following Hurricane Helene. Those contract crews remain in the southern U.S. to help restore expected power outages from Hurricane Milton.

WPS and We Energies are experienced in helping with hurricane restoration efforts. Both companies helped restore power in Puerto Rico following the devastation of Hurricane Maria in 2017. Both companies also assisted in restoring power in Georgia and Florida after Hurricane Irma, and last year they sent crews to help restore power after extreme weather in California.

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