Entergy Arkansas Ready for Winter Weather Wild Card
By: KARK 4 News
Updated: December 10, 2012
Entergy Arkansas and the National Weather Service are teaming up to keep customers informed about a wild card that may play a key role in Arkansas' winter weather.
"This coming winter is expected to fall into the ENSO, or El Nino Southern Oscillation, Neutral category, meaning it will be neither El Nino nor La Nina," said John Robinson, warning coordination meteorologist with the National Weather Service in North Little Rock. Robinson points out comparable ENSO neutral index numbers dating from January 1951 to the present indicate conditions favorable to an ice storm.
"Of course, we're overdue for an ice storm," said Brady Aldy, transmission and distribution operations director for Entergy Arkansas, Inc. Arkansas' last ice storm hit the Entergy Arkansas service territory in January 2009, affecting 111,881 customers. "Being storm ready is a year-round job for our crews and we prepare for a wide range of challenges, including ice storms, during the winter months," said Aldy.
The National Weather Service also reports if wintertime tornadoes touch down during ENSO Neutral conditions, they tend to be more destructive than during either El Nino or La Nina conditions.
Click here to learn more about how Entergy Arkansas prepares for storms and to learn valuable winter storm tips.
"This coming winter is expected to fall into the ENSO, or El Nino Southern Oscillation, Neutral category, meaning it will be neither El Nino nor La Nina," said John Robinson, warning coordination meteorologist with the National Weather Service in North Little Rock. Robinson points out comparable ENSO neutral index numbers dating from January 1951 to the present indicate conditions favorable to an ice storm.
"Of course, we're overdue for an ice storm," said Brady Aldy, transmission and distribution operations director for Entergy Arkansas, Inc. Arkansas' last ice storm hit the Entergy Arkansas service territory in January 2009, affecting 111,881 customers. "Being storm ready is a year-round job for our crews and we prepare for a wide range of challenges, including ice storms, during the winter months," said Aldy.
The National Weather Service also reports if wintertime tornadoes touch down during ENSO Neutral conditions, they tend to be more destructive than during either El Nino or La Nina conditions.
Click here to learn more about how Entergy Arkansas prepares for storms and to learn valuable winter storm tips.
