As Hurricane Melissa brushed past Bermuda early Friday morning, the island woke yesterday morning to widespread power outages and extensive damage to the electrical grid.
The Bermuda Electrolyte Company began the day facing disruptions to more than 20,000 customers — just over half of the island’s 36,000-customer network.
TNN News spoke with Shelley Leman, Managing Director with Responsibility for Transmission, Distribution, and Retail at BELCO.
“Friday morning between 12am and 1 a.m., we saw sustained winds of over 50 knots for a brief period,” Leman explained. “This morning our crews were up at first light to start conducting damage assessments on all of the circuits around the island.”
BELCO activated its full incident command structure, splitting teams into six divisions — east, east-central, north-central, south-central, west-central, and west. Scouts first surveyed lines for hazards, followed by restoration crews focusing on substations and mainline circuits before progressing to smaller branches.
Progress has been steady. As of 8:30 p.m., roughly 4,500 customers remain without service.
“We’ve been addressing emergencies such as downed poles and downed conductors,” Leman said. “It’s been a long day for the crews, but I’m proud of the work accomplished.”
When asked about the timeline for full restoration, Leman emphasized both hope and realism.
“It’s difficult to say. As we move into the smaller pockets of outages — energizing only 10 or 20 customers at a time — it becomes challenging. But we have made significant progress today and will continue pushing. Crews will work until about midnight and return at first light tomorrow.”
Leman acknowledged frustration among those still waiting — including herself.
“I don’t have power right now either,” she shared. “But our process must remain systematic. We know where outages are thanks to advanced metering, so we ask customers not to call unless it’s an emergency.”
One major obstacle: vegetation.
“We battled vegetation once again. Heavy rains earlier in the year created a lot of issues. Palm fronds go airborne and hit our overhead network — and our protection systems intentionally drop circuits to prevent fires or more severe damage.”
No single region sustained the worst damage, she added — the challenges are widespread.
Despite the long hours and ongoing restoration, Leman praised her teams.
“A huge shout-out to our crews — overhead and underground — and our apprentices who are now in their fourth year. Support staff have been delivering food, helping with traffic control, and managing operations 24/7. When everyone else is hunkered down, we have people here responding nonstop.”
Before ending her update, she expressed the company’s commitment clearly:
“You will not be forgotten. We will not stop working until every last customer is brought back online.”
With more work planned through the night and into tomorrow, BELCO hopes to restore all customers by the end of the weekend — weather and vegetation permitting.
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