After two power outages shut down campus in the first month of LSU’s fall semester, students and community members expressed concern over Entergy’s performance. In October, the utility company responded by making structural improvements to its electrical systems, but more work remains.
The outages that stopped daily operations on campus resulted from failures in Entergy’s utility infrastructure. According to Entergy, the first stoppage on Aug. 22 was due to a conductor sleeve failure, and the second on Sept. 25 resulted from an equipment failure on a transmission structure.
“While the outages occurred near one another, they were different and isolated events,” said Seth Schilling, Entergy Louisiana customer service manager in the Baton Rouge area.
Since the outages, Entergy has upgraded more than 10 conductor sleeves and replaced five wood transmission poles with more modern, steel poles, according to a statement released by the company on Oct. 20. Also, the top of the transmission pole impacted by the Sept. 25 outage has been upgraded with a new design that incorporates modern insulators.
To continue providing affordable power, Schilling said, the company has to be strategic in the way it invests in its electric system. Because Entergy is a regulated utility, he said, incurred costs must be prudent.
Shortly after the Aug. 22 outage, local politicians grilled Entergy officials for their inconsistency at a Baton Rouge Metropolitan Council meeting. The stoppage came amid ongoing calls for the utility company to improve service and repair aging, potentially dangerous infrastructure.
Council Member Carolyn Coleman of District 10, who led the charge in August, has remained vocal on Entergy’s need for improvements.
“Outages means no classes, and that’s not good at all,” Coleman said in an interview with the Reveille. “I believe they are on it because we are on it.”
The council meeting established an expectation of Entergy to return later with a report showing changes made and planned, according to Coleman.
“I think they understand, at this point, that this is real, and this is not something that I’m going to let them get away with,” Coleman said.
The outages put strain on students and professors alike.
“Why is it that LSU never lost power during these serious hurricanes and suddenly were losing power for no apparent reason. It’s not speculation that it used to handle it,” said James Stoner, professor of political science at LSU. “We’re going backwards. That’s what’s so frustrating to see.”
The last full substation outage that impacted LSU was in 2008, according to Entergy.
“It’s a real impediment to conducting the academic business of the university,” Stoner said. “We depend increasingly on electricity for PowerPoint presentations, tests, quizzes and things like that.”
Stephen Abel, psychology sophomore and Nicholson Apartments resident, said the outages prevented Wi-Fi use for schoolwork and spoiled foods in his refrigerator.
“When it first happened, I was like okay it won’t happen again, and then it happened again,” Abel said.
Beside Entergy’s recent upgrades, LSU itself is also working to improve the reliable flow of electricity throughout campus.
The university is carrying out a $110 million utility modernization project, said Bryan Andries, executive director of LSU Facility Services. LSU’s electrical system is being made more robust and prepared for campus growth. One way this is being accomplished is by adding a third transformer to LSU’s two current transformers, enabling campus to remain functional if one fails.
Entergy’s recent work to improve service reliability at LSU will be put to the test as the school year continues into spring.
“We understand how critical power is to LSU and the surrounding area,” Schilling said. “While the two outages that occurred this fall were unfortunate, we’re committed to providing the university with reliable power, and that’s exactly what the goal of the improvement work that we performed recently was — to help keep the lights on for students, staff and residents and businesses we serve.”
