Employees, foundation aid Burlington-area residents

In the wake of last week's flooding in the Burlington, Wisconsin, area, We Energies employees participated in two multi-agency resource center events this week to aid customers affected by the flooding. In addition, the We Energies Foundation made a $10,000 donation to the local American Red Cross chapter to aid in the agency's efforts to provide shelter and other goods and services to those displaced by the flooding.

Last week's flooding caused severe damage to a We Energies substation in Burlington that left numerous customers without power until mobile transformers could be brought in and energized. The substation was repaired earlier this week and returned to normal operation on July 18.

Burlington-area residents had the opportunity to seek information and assistance from Red Cross workers (in vests) and We Energies employees, such as Ron Bormann (far left), Robbin Bankhead and Phyllis Eckles of Customer Service and Operations, at two multi-agency resource center events held earlier this week to address issues residents may be facing in the wake of severe flooding in the region. Resource centers were established at Burlington High School in Racine County on July 18 and at Riverview Elementary School in Kenosha County on July 19. At the events, employees addressed inquires about having service restored after work was completed, possible bill extensions due to additional expenses customers are facing and assistance in purchasing new appliances. Employees provided 211 information as an additional resource for social service needs and weatherization information for income-qualifying customers.

A We Energies Foundation donation to the local chapter of the American Red Cross contributed to the following goods and services, as reported by the agency: 

• 2 shelters
• 3 bulk distribution sites
• 353 meals served
• 1,415 snacks served
• 1,611 cleanup kits distributed
• 3,336 bulk items distributed (bleach, masks, heavy-duty brooms, etc.)
• 162 volunteers and staff assisting on operation
• 29 vehicles deployed, including 13 chapter-owned vehicles and 4 emergency response vehicles
• 101 cases opened to provide one-on-one support to families
• 261 people served through casework
• 14 disaster health contacts
• 137 disaster mental health contacts

A Red Cross representative thanked We Energies for the foundation gift and provided an update on their efforts:

"I want to thank all of you for the kind donation to support our disaster operation in southeast Wisconsin the past few days. It looks like it will continue this week. We should be able to close one shelter tomorrow and just leave one open. We have delivered thousands of clean up kits and items. Two semi-trailers are in our parking lot as a lot of supplies have arrived for the operation. This will continue this week and our casework will continue for many weeks."