Emergency Plan - Grand Strand Water and Sewer Authority

EVENT SPECIFIC GUIDELINES 7 (ESG-7)
POWER OUTAGE
Power Outage
3.2.18. SITUATION
All GSWSA facilities depend on a constant supply of electrical power in order to
operate effectively and efficiently.
A loss of electrical power to GSWSA facilities can potentially compromise GSWSA’s
ability to fulfill its primary mission of providing safe drinking water to our customers
and treating their wastewater.
There are numerous different events and situations that can lead to a loss of
commercial power at GSWSA facilities. In general, the more facilities experiencing a
loss of commercial power, the more critical the situation is.
3.2.19. THREAT of HAZARD INFORMATION
The list of natural events that can lead to a loss of commercial power includes, but is
not limited to: thunderstorm, tornado, tropical storm / hurricane, earthquake, snow /
ice / sleet / freezing rain, solar flare, and high winds not associated with any of the
above.
In addition to natural events, there are other potential circumstances that can cause a
loss of commercial power. These include, but are not limited to: planned maintenance
or repairs, equipment failure, human error, and vandalism / sabotage / terrorism.
In September 1989, Hurricane Hugo resulted in complete loss of commercial power
to the entire region. The electrical distribution system was devastated, and many
areas were without electricity for 1 to 2 weeks.
In March 1993, a winter blizzard (frequently referred to as the “Storm of the
Century” or the “White Hurricane”) brought snow, freezing rain, and hurricaneforce
winds which resulted in widespread power outage. An interesting complication
that occurred during this event was the buildup of salt on electrical transformers,
which was carried inland by the hurricane force winds coming off the ocean.
In September 1999, Hurricane Floyd resulted in loss of commercial power to
approximately 50% of GSWSA’s facilities.
3.2.20. CONCEPT of OPERATIONS
In addition to numerous stationary emergency generators, GSWSA owns and
operates a sizeable fleet of mobile emergency generators. Refer to Appendix 9 for
detailed information on emergency generators.
Grand Strand Water & Sewer Authority 112 CONFIDENTIAL MATERIALS
Emergency Management Plan
SECURITY SENSITIVE
June 7, 2013
NOT FOR PUBLIC
DISCLOSURE