Hurricane Ida has now caused more damage to Louisiana’s power grid than the combined damage from hurricanes Katrina, Delta and Zeta combined, Louisiana energy company Entergy reported.
On Sunday, it was confirmed that more than 30,000 utility poles, nearly 35,000 spans of wire, and 5,600 transformers were compromised during the storm, according to Entergy.
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From the damage, 900,000 Entergy customers lost power across the southeastern part of the state. It was last reported that 350,000 customers now have power.
While the storm made landfall a week ago Sunday, the damage is still being assessed. However, unlike Hurricane Katrina’s path of destruction wreaking havoc on multiple states, the damage from Ida is almost exclusive to Louisiana.
Entergy has more than 27,000 restoration workers from 41 states working together to repair the damage and get power back.
The primary fight the company is facing is replacing 24,000 utility poles that help deliver electricity from substations to homes and businesses.
The flooding and local terrain has also been a cause for delay in repair efforts as Entergy officials said many of the distribution poles are located around swamps, marshes, rivers, and heavily flooded wooded areas.
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Entergy is using helicopters and drones to locate damaged infrastructure, as well as airboats and marsh buggies to access waterways. Rear-alley machines are also being used to maneuver tight spaces in residential areas.
“The widespread damage and impact inflicted by Hurricane Ida was felt by so many across Louisiana,” Phillip May, CEO of Entergy Louisiana said, WWL-TV reported. “We are overcoming new challenges each day, and our storm team will march forward until we’ve brought the lights back to all of the communities we serve.”