TAMPA -- Tampa Electric (TECO) is warning of massive power outages when Hurricane Ian moves into its territory in Hillsborough and parts of Pinellas, Pasco and Polk counties.
Spokesperson Cherie Jacobs tells Newsradio WFLA's Aaron Jacobson and WDAE's Jay Recher, customers should be prepared for "extensive outages. This is a really big storm and it's going to be over us for a while."
Jacobs says they're bringing in 3,000 line workers, tree trimmers and damage assessors from several states, including Texas and Indiana. "They will be poised to help us restore power as soon as the storm passes and it's safe to work."
TECO says it plans to shut down power to areas near the Straz Center Wednesday evening. This is to prevent saltwater intrusion from storm surge from harming electrical cables. Thursday, the utility will decide whether to shut off power to parts of Davis and Harbour Islands, as well as some downtown hotels, for the same reason.
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