EEI’s Drew Maloney on Fern: ‘America’s Electric Companies Are Really Well Positioned to Deal With This’
Tens of thousands of mutual assistance workers are responding to Winter Storm Fern, which blanketed much of the Southern and Eastern United States in snow, ice, sleet, and frigid temperatures over the weekend.
Winter Storm Fern blanketed more than 200 million Americans in snow, sleet, ice, and frigid temperatures over the weekend, prompting one of the largest mutual assistance responses in the electric power industry’s history.
More than 65,000 workers from 43 states have been mobilized and are assessing damage and restoring power where it is safe to do so. That’s comparable to the historic response and recovery efforts seen during Hurricanes Helene and Milton in 2024.
“America’s electric companies are really well positioned to deal with this,” EEI President and CEO Drew Maloney said Monday morning on CNBC’s “Worldwide Exchange.”
Maloney highlighted the planning that began last week with the highest levels of industry and government, including with senior Administration officials, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the U.S. Departments of Energy and Homeland Security, and dozens of state and local leaders, to ensure unity of effort in impacted communities.
“It’s really a unified effort,” Maloney said. “I think it’s really important for everyone to understand the coordination with federal, state, and local officials … to get power up as quickly as possible during this historic ice storm.”
While ice poses unique challenges to restoration, tens of thousands of lineworkers are braving frigid conditions across several states and will continue working around the clock to ensure power is restored to everyone who is able to receive it.
Watch Maloney’s full interview below, and visit the EEI Storm Center for the latest storm updates.