What would you think is the number one reason for Santee Cooper power outages?
We’ll give you a minute.
Wind? Branches or trees and limbs? Mechanical issues?
Critters. The answer is animals, mainly squirrels, cause the majority of our power outages. They nibble on lines and get into substations.
The reason trees and branches don’t win this scenario is because of our tree trimming efforts. As part of Santee Cooper’s commitment to the environment, Santee Cooper performs tree trimming and vegetation control to protect the health of individual trees, redirect growth away from the power lines, and encourage plant and wildlife biodiversity.
We work a rotating schedule across our service areas, trimming branches that are getting too close to power lines or other equipment. For tree-trimming services, we contract Xylem Tree Experts and Lewis Tree Services, which have certified arborists on staff to be sure they’re keeping the health of the tree intact. The workers use a technique called “directional pruning” that is recommended by the International Society of Arboriculture. With this technique, the workers only remove certain branches that are growing (or will grow) toward the line and into the space surrounding the wires. The objective is always to prune only what is necessary to achieve the desired results.
By strategically trimming trees, we help retain our reliability that puts us in the top 10% nationwide. It also helps minimize damage to our lines during thunderstorms and hurricanes.
If you see a tree that needs trimming, you can email us at treemanagement@santeecooper.com .
Next time your power goes out and there’s no clear visible reason for it, that’s probably because it’s a critter that has ventured into something it shouldn’t have instead of staying in the safety of its newly trimmed tree.