• LIHEAP offers cooling assistance
• 10 Things You Might Not Know About Power Restoration
• Update on Lockbox Payment Processing Address
• Frankie Burchfield retires after 45 years
• Orlando Coon retires after 25 years
• OECC Economic Impact Analysis

July 2, 2024

LIHEAP offers cooling assistance

The Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) can help households stay safe and cool by providing help with paying electric bills in summer months to qualifying individuals and families.

Beginning on July 1, applications are accepted on a first-come, first- served basis, as long as funds are available. Businesses are excluded from receiving the benefit.

LIHEAP is not administered by your local cooperative, but rather through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). It is operated by Community Action Agencies.

Check eligibility at your local Community Action Agency.

July 2, 2024

10 Things You Might Not Know About Power Restoration

At Ouachita Electric, we’re accustomed to members’ questions about power outages, and why it can take time to get the lights back on. Given our reliance on electricity, there’s simply never a good time to be without it.
We’d like to shed light on our restoration process to help our members understand what may be happening behind the scenes. Here are 10 things you might not know about restoration:

1. We need you. When your power goes out, it might be just at your home or a small section of a neighborhood. There is a chance we may not know about it, and no one has reported it. We rely on you to let us know if your power is out. Report outages by calling (844) 326-4624.

2. Our employees might be affected too. Because we are owned by the members we serve, our employees are local too. They are your neighbors, friends and familiar community volunteers. When you’re without power, our people might be too.

3. It’s a team effort. Every one of our employees are working to get your power restored as soon as possible. Our member services representatives are taking your calls, engineers and field staff are surveying damage, our vegetation management team is clearing hazards, dispatchers are organizing crews, and communicators are keeping everyone informed of progress or potential dangers. When your power goes out, we all work together as quickly and safely as possible to get you back to normal.

4. We assess the situation first. Every outage is different, and we don’t know how dangerous it is or what equipment might need to be replaced. When responding to outages, we first need to see what happened, then figure out what materials we need and a plan for how to fix the problem(s) without compromising electric flow for the rest of our members.

5. Restoration is normally prioritized by the largest number of members we can get back on in the shortest amount of time. Our crews focus on responding first to public safety issues and critical services like hospitals. Then we complete work that impacts the largest number of people first.

6. Our employees face many dangers. Besides working around high-voltage electricity, our crews are on alert for wild animals, weather elements, falling trees and fast-moving cars. (If you ever drive past one of our vehicles, please do so slowly.)

7. Flickering lights are a good thing. Some folks mistake flickering lights for outages, but these “blinks” are important because they indicate our equipment worked and prevented a possible outage likely caused by wayward animals or stray tree limbs on the lines.

8. You need a backup plan. We do our best to help those who need it, but if you depend on electricity for life support purposes, you must have a backup plan — remember, we don’t always know how long restoration efforts will take. If you’re unsure what to do, call us so we can help you prepare an emergency location.

9. Our employees have to plan and eat. If you ever see our trucks in a restaurant parking lot while your power is out, know that sometimes our employees huddle in a safe, common area to map out their plan for getting your power back on. Also, our crews work long, hard hours during outages and need to take time for meals just like everyone else.

10. Sometimes it’s a waiting game. Our portion of the power grid is connected to other electric utilities, and we maintain positive relationships with power providers interconnected to our system. If our outage is due to an issue from their feed into our system, we must let them do their repairs and be mindful of what they’re going through to fix it.

We do our best to avoid power disruptions, but they are inevitable from time to time. If the lights go out, know that your co-op team is working as quickly and safely as possible to restore power.

June 27, 2024

Update on Lockbox Payment Processing Address

As of the current billing cycle, please make note of the change in the address for the processing center handling Lockbox payments. Lockbox payments refer to payments that are sent to the return address specified on the bill.

The revised address for the processing center, which will now be printed on the bill, is as follows:

Ouachita Electric Cooperative
PO Box 70878
Charlotte, NC 28272-0878

If you typically make bill payments by mailing them to the Lockbox, we strongly advise allowing sufficient time for the United States Postal Service to deliver the payment to the updated processing center.

June 5, 2024

Frankie Burchfield retires after 45 years

retired from his position as a right-of-way foreman on April 26. Throughout his tenure, Frankie was known for his friendly and bold personality, and his colleagues appreciated his authentic concern for others. He formed strong bonds with his co-workers, and they were always delighted by his unpredictable yet enjoyable conversations. Frankie was particularly passionate about mentoring summer interns and took pride in seeing new generations take an interest in the energy career field. When asked about his most cherished memories at Ouachita Electric, Frankie mentioned working in major storms and the powerful connections he formed with his colleagues during those times. As he embarks on retirement, Frankie intends to devote his time to gardening, hunting, fishing and savoring a slower pace of life. We thank you, Frankie, for the years of service and long-lasting imprint that you left on the co-op.

Frankie Burchfield (left) is recognized for 45 years of service by General Manager Shawn Dorflinger.

June 5, 2024

Orlando Coon retires after 25 years

On Nov. 15, 1999, Orlando Coon joined Ouachita Electric as a right-of-way worker/tree trimmer.

Throughout his time at the company, Orlando's quiet yet observant personality, wisdom and guidance proved invaluable to his colleagues, helping to shape them into the skilled professionals they are today. His commitment to his faith and strong work ethic made him an outstanding employee and a role model to others.

Orlando shared that what he'll miss most about his time at Ouachita Electric is working with his co-workers, who undoubtedly feel the same way about him.

As he enters retirement, Orlando plans to spend his time fishing, camping and working around his home. It's impossible to fully express the positive impact Orlando has had on Ouachita Electric during his 25-year tenure. Thank you, Orlando, for your eternal contributions to the co-op.

Orlando Coon (left) is recognized for 25 years of service by General Manager Shawn Dorflinger.

June 5, 2024

OECC Economic Impact Analysis

« Back to Top