Indian Electric Cooperative Ready For Icy Weather

The Indian Electric Co-op serves the areas west and northwest of Tulsa, some of the places that may get the bulk of the ice.

But they tell us they're ready.

Mannford students Joey Baker and Brenden Dell got their first wish when Mannford canceled school for Friday. Now they're crossing their fingers the storm won't affect power in their neighborhoods.

"Yeah, that would be a big deal," Baker said.

Baker works at a local gas station and says customers are gearing up, just in case.

"I work at a gas station and there's been people bringing generators and stuff up there, filling them up. I guess people are freaking out about it,” the students said.

The Indian Electric Cooperative serves more than 18,000 homes and businesses and covers 2,500 square miles, including Mannford.

Manager David Wilson said the co-op starts putting plans together a full week before potential severe weather.

"If it hits us and we're not prepared, then trying to get the materials can be difficult. Whereas now, we can preempt it and order it before, it's much better," Wilson said.

The co-op ordered three truckloads of extra light poles just for this weekend. It's also in touch with other electric co-op crews all across the state in case it needs extra help.

Indian Electric said it's been aggressively trimming trees for the past two decades, switching out old equipment for new and upgrading technology.

Wilson said, "We spend a lot of money every year on maintenance, changing out poles to try to make sure structurally, everything's sound."

Indian Electric Co-op has a map online that shows any power outages. You can find that here.