ATLANTA, April 2, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- 2018 marks the sixth year that Georgia Power has partnered with the state's other electric utilities to celebrate and thank linemen across Georgia. Linemen work in communities throughout Georgia every day, but their work is especially evident following spring and summer thunderstorms, tornadoes, hurricanes and snow and ice storms in the winter.  

During Georgia Power's 2018 Thank a Lineman initiative, saying "thank you" is easy simply by signing the digital card at www.georgiapower.com/thankalineman. Additionally, Georgians can celebrate and engage with linemen stories and videos on social media by using and following #ThankALineman and visiting Georgia Power's Facebook (www.facebook.com/GeorgiaPower), Twitter (@GeorgiaPower) and Instagram (@ga_power) pages.

"Our line personnel are committed to safety and reliability every day. They represent all walks of life and truly serve as the front line in keeping the lights on for our customers," said Pedro Cherry, executive vice president of customer service and operations for Georgia Power. "The work they do is exceptional and I personally thank them for their hard work."

2017 was an exceptionally active year for Georgia Power line crews including multiple snow and ice storms and most notably, Hurricane Irma. When Hurricane Irma struck Georgia in September 2017, more than 8,000 Georgia Power line personnel and linemen from assisting utilities across 23 states converged to assist in restoring power to more than 950,000 customers – more than half the Georgia Power's residential customer base. Working safely, line personnel fully restored power to the affected customers earlier than expected and replaced nearly 1,500 broken or damaged power poles, more than 6,000 spans of wire (or nearly 230 miles), nearly 2,400 fallen trees and approximately 450 transformers damaged.

A Powerful Assistance Network
In addition to serving the customers 2.5 million customers in Georgia, Georgia Power linemen are often called away from their families to help restore power when major storms or disasters occur as a part of the company's involvement in the mutual assistance network. Most notably, crews traveled all the way to Puerto Rico to assist in storm restoration following Hurricane Maria. Thanks in large part to these linemen, the company has received recognition from the Edison Electric Institute (EEI) for outstanding emergency response, including multiple Emergency Recovery Awards and the Emergency Assistance Award.

About Georgia Power
Georgia Power is the largest subsidiary of Southern Company (NYSE: SO), one of the nation's largest generators of electricity.  Value, Reliability, Customer Service and Stewardship are the cornerstones of the company's promise to 2.5 million customers in all but four of Georgia's 159 counties. Committed to delivering clean, safe, reliable and affordable energy at rates below the national average, Georgia Power maintains a diverse, innovative generation mix that includes nuclear, coal and natural gas, as well as renewables such as solar, hydroelectric and wind.   Georgia Power focuses on delivering world-class service to its customers every day and the company is consistently recognized by J.D. Power and Associates as an industry leader in customer satisfaction. For more information, visit and connect with the company on Facebook (Facebook.com/GeorgiaPower) and Twitter (Twitter.com/GeorgiaPower). 

SOURCE Georgia Power