Hurricane Hermine leaves Clay Electric customers powerless

KEYSTONE HEIGHTS – Although most of Clay County missed severe damage from last weekend’s scare from Hurricane Hermine, about 43,000 customers of Clay Electric Cooperative lost power.

As of 5 p.m. Sept. 2, 16,000 accounts were still out of power, down from 43,000 accounts at 7:30 a.m. Workers restored 27,000 accounts alone on Sept. 2.

Clay Electric moved 121 additional outside linemen and all available Clay Electric construction personnel to assist crews in the Gainesville and Lake City districts the morning of Sept. 3. All crews were asked to remain in the Gainesville and Lake City districts until all services are restored.

Power company officials said the outages were caused by Hermine’s gusty winds, which peaked at around 55 to 60 mph across portions of the co-op’s service area.

Most of the power outages were due to trees and tree limb debris falling across the cooperative’s lines.

The cooperative’s Gainesville and Lake City districts were the most impacted by the storm since those areas were closest to the path of Hurricane Hermine.

As of 5 p.m. Sept. 2, here are the latest outage numbers by district:

Gainesville district – 8,500; Lake City district – 6,262; Keystone Heights district – 726; Orange Park district – 348; Palatka district – 22; Salt Springs district – 86.

The cooperative had crews working until 3 a.m. on Sept. 2 to respond to outages related to Hurricane Hermine. These crews were recalled when storm conditions made it unsafe to continue work. Work resumed at safe light the next day.

Outside crews have begun working with Clay Electric personnel and more outside crews are expected to arrive in an effort to speed up the restoration process. Eight construction crews from a Mississippi electric co-op arrived in Gainesville on Sept. 2 and helped with restoration efforts.

Officials asked members to remain patient as crews worked as quickly and safely as they could to restore power to as many people as possible as soon as possible.

Ham radio operators honor 9/11 families

CAMP BLANDING – To commemorate the 15th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, members of the Clay County Amateur Radio Emergency Service and Orange Park Amateur Radio Club will operate a “special event station” at Camp Blanding on Sept. 10.

The event memorializes those who lost their lives that day and honors their families. The special event station coincides with ceremonies and activities occurring at Camp Blanding between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m.

The special event station – using the Amateur Call Sign N4G – will contact amateur radio operators throughout the world. Amateur radio operators, or hams, who successfully contact the special event station via radio will receive a certificate commemorating the event.

“Thousands of hams covet certificates and post-cards from special events, particularly those events that recognize military service. This is just one way that we can honor the brave ladies and gentlemen that have, and continue to, faithfully defend liberty throughout the world,” said Adrian Gray, emergency coordinator for Clay County ARES.

In addition, Clay County ARES provided communications support at the EOC and shelters that were opened in Clay County during Hurricane Hermine. There are 650,000 amateur radio licensees in the U.S., and more than 2.5 million around the world. Through the Amateur Radio Relay League ARES program, ham volunteers provide emergency communications for thousands of state and local emergency response agencies, all for free. To learn more, please visit http://www.clayares.org.

Middleburg historian to speak at Penney Farms

PENNEY FARMS – The Middleburg historian who fought for years to put the Historic Hilltop Community on the map will discuss black history in Penney Farms this month.

Maude Jackson will be the featured speaker on Sept. 15 at the Historical Society meeting in Penney Farms where she will present “African –American Schools of Clay County.”

The presentation will be held in the Council Chamber at Town Hall, located at 4100 Clark Ave. at 7 p.m.

Jackson will talk about her personal experiences as a student in these years before integration. This will be the first meeting of the program year. The public is invited for the discussion.

Mobile veteran’s services available

ORANGE PARK – As many veterans feel confused about benefits and services they have earned, officials from one military nonprofit is hitting the road to educate vets about their beneifits.

The Disabled American Veterans Mobile Service Office will be at the following locations to personally provide the best counseling and claim filing assistance available. Like all D-A-V services, help from the Mobile Service Office is free to all veterans and members of their families. Tuesday, September 20, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., the mobile service will be at the DAV Jacksonville Chapter 1 at 1439 Parental Home Rd. in Jacksonville. Wednesday, September 22, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., the mobile service heads to the DAV Orange Park Chapter 38 at 470 Madeira Dr. in Orange Park. And on Thursday, September 22 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., the service heads to Career Source at 5000 Norwood Ave. in Jacksonville.

Orange Park Granite Joins U-Haul Dealer Network

MIDDLEBURG – Another dealer has joined the U-Haul umbrella.

Orange Park Granite is now a U-Haul neighborhood dealer. Located at 1623 Blanding Blvd., the company now offers U-Haul trucks, trailers, towing equipment, support rental items and in-store pickup for boxes.

Hours of operation for U-Haul rentals are 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday and 8 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday.

Orange Park Granite owner Salvador Urbina said she is proud to team with the industry leader in do-it-yourself moving and self-storage to better meet the demands of Clay County.

U-Haul and Orange Park Granite strive to lessen their environmental impact through sustainability initiatives. Truck sharing is a core U-Haul sustainability business practice that allows individuals to access a fleet of trucks that is larger than what they could access on an individual basis.

Every U-Haul truck placed in a community helps keep 19 personally owned large-capacity vehicles, pickups, SUVs and vans off the road. Fewer vehicles means less traffic congestion, less pollution, less fuel burned and cleaner air.

Orange Park Granite is a great place to become U-Haul Famous®. Take your picture in front of a U-Haul product, send it in and your face could land on the side of a U-Haul truck. Upload your photo through Instagram using #uhaulfamous, or go to www.uhaulfamous.com to submit photos and learn more.