Page 11 - Florida Sentinel 9-14-18

Local
Tampa Electric To Install New Electric Meters
Hillsborough County Deputies Rescue Teenagers In Kayak
Tampa Electric has begun installing state-of-the-art, smart electric meters for every customer – part of a multi-year project to build a smarter en- ergy grid that will deliver safe, more reliable and affordable energy to more than 750,000 customers.
When the $235 million project is complete in early 2022, it will serve as a founda- tion for many future improve- ments, including:
Improved outage detection and restoration. Tampa Elec- tric will know when an outage occurs and will more quickly diagnose and repair the prob- lem.
Additionally, the technol- ogy will provide customers with more timely, customized information on the cause and status of restoration.
More convenience to start, stop or transfer service, as these will occur remotely. No appointments necessary.
More information about electricity use. Customers will have the ability to manage their energy use throughout the month, set up alerts when con- sumption and bills are ap- proaching certain levels and monitor daily usage through mobile devices.
More flexibility. Customers will have the ability to pick their own payment date.
Increased privacy on your property. Electricity usage in- formation will be relayed auto- matically to Tampa Electric for billing purposes, limiting on- site or drive-by visits to read meters, to cut or restore power.
All customers scheduled to
receive a new meter will receive a letter indicating when in- stallers will be in their area.
Before any change is made, a technician will attempt to no- tify a customer about the in- stallation of the meter, which will result in a brief interrup- tion to electric service.
All vendors installing the smart meters will carry Tampa Electric contractor photo iden- tification cards. If the customer is not available at the time of installation, the vendor will post a door hanger noting the meter was replaced.
Here are a few things to know about the new, sec- ond-generation smart me- ters:
There are no installation fees.
It won’t change the cus- tomer’s account information or billing cycle.
Customers do not need to be at their home or business for the installation.
A brief interruption to elec- tric service will occur when the meter is installed. Installers will attempt to notify on-site customers before the outage begins.
If a customer chooses to opt out of the meter installation, the company will assess a fee to manually read their meter in the near future. The amount of the fee has not yet been deter- mined, and it will require ap- proval from the Florida Public Service Commission.
Questions about the new meters and a list of frequently asked questions are available at tampaelectric.com/mymeter.
On Saturday, two teenagers decided to go kayaking. What the 16-year- olds hadn’t counted on was the kayak flipping over.
The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office received the 9-1-1 call around 8:20 p.m., and four deputies went into action.
The boys, identified as Nathan Poinsette and Joe Munoz, suddenly found themselves in the wa- ters of Bay Bayou RV Resort. They were underneath a bridge. As a result of the cur- rent, they were unable to swim to the shore.
Fortunately, both were wearing life jackets and they managed to get back into the kayak. However, to compli- cate things, the tide was quickly rushing into the Bay and they were unable to paddle to shore.
In less than five minutes,
Corporal Orlys
Shown in this photograph from left to right are: Hillsborough County Deputy Andrew Howard, Nathan Poinsette, Joe Munoz, and Deputy Daniel Henry. Corporal Orlys Oquendo and Deputy Chris Dirmitt are not shown in the photograph. (Photo courtesy of Hills- borough County Sheriff’s Office).
Oquendo, Deputy Daniel Henry, Deputy Andrew Howard, and Deputy Chris Dirmitt were on the scene. The deputies didn’t wait for the Hillsborough County Dive Team to arrive.
The four men quickly tied tow ropes together,
which are designed specifi- cally for a shore-based res- cue. They were able to toss the rope to the kayakers, and then pull the young men to safety.
Thankfully, neither of the young men reported any in- juries.
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 2018 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 11-A