Duke Energy Florida has announced the completion of its Ulmerton Storm Staging Site, a facility designed to support storm response operations in Pinellas County. The new site will serve as a secure base for equipment, trucks, and lineworkers before and after hurricanes, helping to restore power more efficiently to customers in areas including St. Petersburg and Clearwater.
Previously, Duke Energy Florida relied on temporary spaces at partner facilities such as local businesses, schools, and community organizations. These locations often became unavailable once their regular activities resumed following storms. The new dedicated staging site provides a permanent location for resources needed during storm restoration work.
Resources stationed at the Ulmerton facility can be deployed quickly once it is safe to do so after a hurricane passes. This approach is intended to speed up the process of restoring electricity to affected communities.
“Our customers in St Petersburg and Clearwater can be reassured that we are working as quickly as possible to restore power in the event of a hurricane in our area,” said Melissa Seixas, president, Duke Energy Florida. “Dedicated storm staging sites, like our newest one at Ulmerton, will allow us to host critical resources close by so we can quickly turn lights back on for our customers.”
“From the Ulmerton Storm Staging Site, we’ll be able to get right into all areas of Pinellas County,” said Todd Fountain, GM, emergency preparedness, Duke Energy Florida. “Having our staging site centrally located helps us get to critical areas faster. We learned during past storms the importance of getting resources here prior to the storm making landfall. So, we’ll house teams in a safe place, just outside the path of the storm, and keep about 300 vehicles at the staging site so we’re ready to go as soon as it’s safe.”
Duke Energy Florida supplies electricity across a 13,000-square-mile area in Florida with an energy capacity of 12,300 megawatts and serves 2 million customers.
Duke Energy is headquartered in Charlotte and operates electric utilities serving millions across several states while also providing natural gas services.
More information about Duke Energy’s operations can be found at duke-energy.com and through its social media channels.
