By Ray King
When power went out at one Pine Bluff Fire Station during Sunday’s storm, the emergency generators kicked in and Fire Emergency Services Chief Shauwn Howell said firefighters at the station didn’t miss a beat.
Howell said the natural gas-powered generators at Station 7 on Ridgway Road kicked on and while he hadn’t checked today, said they may still be in operation.
“They’re pretty quiet and sometimes you don’t even know they are on unless you walk by one,” Howell said.
He said the generators at Station 1 in the Civic Center Complex also activated for a short period of time but the station did not lose electricity as did much of southern Pine Bluff.
Asked if firefighters saw an increase in calls as a result of the storm, Howell said yes.
“Anytime the power goes out we get a lot of alarm calls and we got calls about downed power lines,” he said. “It’s an unfortunate time with the Corona virus and now this but we want to encourage everyone to be safe. If you see a downed power line don’t touch it. Call the electric company and call us and we will come out and secure the scene.”
Howell said the department expects to receive a lot of alarm calls when power is restored to parts of the city.
He also said firefighters are out today working and surveying and seeing what is going on.
‘There was a whole lot of damage,” Howell said. “I’ve seen a lot of trees that looked like they just came up from the roots.”
