Wisconsin municipal workers continue hurricane support in Florida: Last week, nearly 50 Wisconsin public power workers made their way to Florida to provide aid in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton, which came ashore as a powerful Category 3 storm on Wednesday, Oct. 9. Originally deployed to help Kissimmee Utility Authority, the Wisconsin crews were quickly reassigned to Lakeland Electric and its community about 30 miles east of Tampa, where their help was more urgently needed. There they were met with high floodwaters and summer-like temps in the mid-80s and high humidity, making work conditions challenging.
MEUW Safety and Operations staff and apprentice and journeymen lineworkers representing 22 Wisconsin municipalities are working alongside crews from eight other states to rebuild the electric infrastructure and restore customers’ power in Lakeland. While great progress has been made, the damage from high winds and flooding was extensive, and some customers remain without power days after the landfall. As expected, the crews’ return home is largely dependent on the overall pace of restoration. Current estimates suggest they’ll be back by Friday, Oct. 18.
MEUW will continue to provide regular updates about the mutual aid effort on its social media pages and at www.meuw.org/milton. A photo album can be found here. If you have pictures from crews in Florida, please send them to office@meuw.org.
How did you celebrate Public Power Week? We’d like to share photos and news about how your utility celebrated Public Power Week with your community. Please send pics and details to news@meuw.org so we can include them in a future edition of Live Lines.
Register today for the Electric Operations Conference & Expo! MEUW and the Wisconsin Electric Cooperative Association (WECA) will hold the 2025 Electric Operations Conference & Expo at the Kalahari Resort in Wisconsin Dells on Jan. 15, 16, and 17. Employees at all levels are welcome and encouraged to attend this year’s event, which features a full agenda with a great lineup of speakers and breakout sessions on a wide variety of important and relevant topics. Green Bay Packer legend Gilbert Brown will share his insights and lessons-learned around teamwork and community, and there will be an Expo of utility suppliers and service providers that will run for five hours on Thursday, Jan. 16.
Again this year, three types of registration passes — labeled as Kilowatt, Megawatt, and Gigawatt — are available to accommodate those who wish to attend only part of the three-day event. Those most interested in the Expo (trade show), for example, will want to purchase a Megawatt pass, which offers access to the Wednesday Welcome Reception and Thursday’s conference sessions, meals, and the Expo. MEUW members who register by Dec. 1 can get a Megawatt pass for $225.
Full details about the event — including a link to reserve your hotel room at a special rate, and information about the Apprentice Graduation Banquet — are available here.
District Dialogues continue throughout October: Getting members together for a meal and networking is a time-honored MEUW tradition, and registration is open for this year’s District Dialogues. Network and discuss hot topics in a roundtable session with municipal utility leaders from across the state at an upcoming District Dialogue luncheon, sponsored by Utility Sales and Service. Don’t miss your chance to join one of the three remaining luncheons:
- Thurs., Oct. 17 — Rice Lake
- Tues., Oct. 22 — Lake Mills
- Tues., Oct. 29 — Black River Falls
Each session will begin at 10 a.m. and conclude after lunch by about 1:30 p.m. There is no cost to attend, but pre-registration is required. Sign-up details are available here.
Are you leading most effectively? Collaborating is much more than just working with people — it also involves using influence and persuasion to drive high-performing teams. Leaders skilled in collaboration understand how individuals impact one another and how to foster creative thinking and effective problem-solving to drive results. Part of MEUW’s three-part Municipal Utility Leadership Certificate series, Leading Through Collaboration will give attendees practical ideas and skills they can bring back to their workplace. The class will be held in Mauston on Wednesday, Dec. 4. More information and registration are available here.
Make plans to attend Regulation, Compliance & Safety course: Part of MEUW’s “Fundamentals of Utility Management” training program, this class will explore the wide array of regulations, compliance, and safety rules every municipal utility leader must follow. As a highly regulated business, utilities must comply with dozens of operating rules to retain the “right to serve” electric customers. Offered Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025, in Mauston, the course will explore the reasons behind the rules and provide insights to make compliance easier. An outline of the training topics, the instructors, and registration details are here.