The energy provider thanked their customers for their patience as they reconnected some 135,000 homes in the north of Scotland impacted by the once in a generation weather event.
Following full restoration of power to customers, SSEN will maintain a heavy staff presence across the affected areas carrying out remedial repairs and maintaining and refuelling any mobile generators as required. SSEN teams will be on hand to support customers until such time as all full repairs have been carried out.
SSEN has moved its operational status in the north of Scotland from Red Alert to Yellow Alert and will remain on this status until they return the network to full operational health.
Mark Rough, Director of Operations for SSEN, said: "In the 35 years that I have worked for SSEN, I can honestly say that this is the worst storm I have ever experienced. The extensive damage caused to our network by Storm Arwen has been unprecedented in some areas, with the North East region experiencing the equivalent of almost two years' worth of overhead line faults in just one 12-hour period.
-- Advertisement --
"I am fully aware of the difficult situation this has caused for many of our customers and am incredibly sorry for the length of time that some our customers have been without power. I know that this has been a challenging time for many, and I want to thank everyone for their patience and understanding while our teams battled to restore supplies.
"I'd also like to pay tribute to the hard work of my teams across Scotland and everyone who has supported us, including people from as far afield as Dorset and Dublin. They have done an amazing job in some exceptionally demanding conditions. This monumental effort has been supported by great collaborative working with local community groups and government agencies to ensure the safety and welfare of customers and communities.
"As we continue to work to return the network to full operational health in the coming days, we will maintain enhanced staffing levels. This is important as we want to make absolutely sure that we are aware of all faults on our localised network and are calling on any customers who are returning to an unoccupied property, or who have not been in contact with us and are still without power, to get in touch by calling 105 as soon as possible."
SSEN is actively tracking a weather front that is due to move through the country on Tuesday and will monitor this on a regular basis during the next 24-48 hours, moving resources and equipment to locations they believe will see the worst of the weather.
