CenterPoint Energy employees leave for Louisiana to help restore power across the state

Lake Charles residents recovering following Hurricane Laura

FOX 26's Randy Wallace speaks with residents who surveyed what was left behind by Hurricane Laura.

HOUSTON - On Friday, Aug. 28 CenterPoint Energy sent nearly 400 linemen, contractors and support employees from Houston and Evansville, Ind., to assist with power restoration efforts in southwest Louisiana due to Hurricane Laura’s damage.

CenterPoint Energy crews will start working 16-hour shifts once the onboarding process is complete.

Hurricane Laura narrowly missed Houston but several areas in Louisiana were impacted by the high winds.

“Since the hurricane missed our Houston Electric service territory, we were able to quickly and efficiently deploy critical resources from Houston and Evansville to provide support to our electric utility neighbors to the east,” said Kenny Mercado, CenterPoint Energy’s Senior Vice President, Electric Operations. “We are fully committed to restoring power to affected customers as safely and quickly as possible.”

The company says it is already making plans to send a second wave of resources to support the team.