Our Priority Approach To Restoration
As soon as conditions are safe, our crews begin assessing storm damage—checking our facilities, equipment and infrastructure, and identifying safety risks.
We first repair any damage to power plants, transmission lines and substations—because power can’t flow to you until those are fixed.
Next, we repair and restore power to feeder and distribution lines, starting with the ones that bring power to the most people and are easiest to resolve.
This approach helps us restore power to the greatest number of customers as quickly as possible.
First, we ensure our power plants and substations are in safe working order.
First, we ensure our power plants and substations are in safe working order.
Then, electric service is restored to critical service facilities – hospitals, disaster centers and main police and fire stations. This enables emergency services to help with other storm-related problems or injuries.
Then, electric service is restored to critical service facilities – hospitals, disaster centers and main police and fire stations. This enables emergency services to help with other storm-related problems or injuries.
Next, we focus on communication service providers and facilities providing important public services, such as supermarkets, home improvement/building supply centers, insurance facilities and others.
Next, we focus on communication service providers and facilities providing important public services, such as supermarkets, home improvement/building supply centers, insurance facilities and others.
After that, we repair electrical circuits that provide power to the largest groups of customers in the shortest amount of time until power is restored to all our customers.
After that, we repair electrical circuits that provide power to the largest groups of customers in the shortest amount of time until power is restored to all our customers.
Estimated Restoration Time
After a major storm, Tampa Electric provides an estimated restoration time, which is the projected date and time when we expect to restore power to most customers who can safely receive it. In some cases, we provide estimated restoration times specific to different areas within our region. Our estimates can sometimes change as conditions evolve during the restoration process.
How We Estimate It
We consider:
- The extent and location of storm damage
- The number of repair crews that can safely work on our system
- Safety conditions across the system
Why Your Power Might Still Be Out
Even if your area has power, your home may not if:
- Repairs are needed at multiple points along your service line
- You’re on a different line than nearby homes
No matter the situation, we won’t stop until everyone’s power is restored.
Learn more about our power restoration process.
Experiencing a power outage?
Visit our outage map to report and track outages in your neighborhood. You can learn the cause and restoration status in addition to the number of customers affected and the estimated restoration time.
