Light Reading - July 2021

Inland Power is my cooperative!

Board Redistricting Inland Power and Light is a memberowned cooperative, which means our board of trustees is made up of members just like you.

The word “trustee” gets to the heart of the matter. Co-op members are entrusting board members to keep their co-op strong. The job is more than attending board meetings. Trustees must learn about complicated issues in the energy business and foresee challenges in

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providing affordable and reliable power.

They forge a long-term plan for the sustainability of the cooperative. They hire the CEO. They reach out and listen to the members, speak up for the cooperative and stand up for members at every turn.

Trustees are stewards of that purpose and make every decision big or small with the members in mind.

One of the decisions your board made recently was to redistrict our service territory. Previously, our territory was comprised of seven district directors, with two at-large directors. The new makeup of the board now contains seven trustee members each of whom represent their respective districts.

District one is represented by Gale Rettkowski and includes all the area served by Inland Power south of Highway 2 as it runs east-west through Lincoln County, then west of a line that runs north-south along the Spokane-Lincoln County line and the Lincoln-Adams County line as it runs east-west to the end of our service area.

District two is represented by Garry Rosman and includes all the area served

by Inland Power north of Highway 2 as it runs east-west through Lincoln County and south of Lake Roosevelt and the Spokane River until the river intersects with the Spokane-Lincoln County line and travels south until it meets back with Highway 2.

District three includes all the area served

by Inland Power in the northern portion of Inland Power’s service territory. It includes everything north of the Spokane River along an east-west boundary line until the N 7 Mile bridge where it travels south on N 9 Mile Rd. to the intersection of W Francis Ave. It then proceeds East to Division/Highway 395 then proceeds South to Trent Ave/Highway 290/ Highway 53 and follows an east-west line to include all area north of Trent Ave/ Highway 290 until the end of Inland’s service territory near Rathdrum. Chris

Davis represents this district.

Kristina Bahr represents district four, which includes all the area served by Inland Power south of an east-west line along Trent Ave/Highway 290 until it reaches Division/Highway 395. It then follows a line along Division/Highway 395 as it travels south to I-90 and then west on I-90 until it hits the intersection of Highway 195, it then includes all territory east of Highway 195 and north of the Spokane-Whitman County line.

District five is represented by Randy Suess and includes the central portion of Inland Power’s service territory. It includes everything east of a line running north-south along the Spokane-Lincoln County line. It then travels east to include everything south of the Spokane River along an east-west boundary line until the N 7 Mile bridge where it travels south on N 9 Mile Rd. to the intersection of W Francis Ave. It then proceeds east to Division/Highway 395 then proceeds south to I-90, west until Highway 195 and then includes everything west of Highway 195 until it reaches the Whitman County line. It then follows an east-west line along the Spokane-Whitman County line until it meets the Lincoln-Spokane County line.

James Kroll represents district six, which includes all the area served by Inland Power south of the Spokane-Whitman County line when extended east and west to the ends of Inland Power’s service area and north of a line along Highway 26 from Washtucna to its junction with Highway 195 and then along Highway 195 to its junction with Highway 270 then along Highway 270 to its end.

District seven is represented by Brian Slaybaugh and includes all the area served by Inland Power south of a line along Highway 26 from Washtucna to its junction with Highway 195, then along Highway 195 to its junction with Highway 270 then along Highway 270 to its end.

District map located inside

LightReading inlandpower.com

July 2021

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YOUR

CO O P E R AT I V E Board Redistricting

SAFETY Wildfire preparedness SAFETY Fire Safety Mode

Fire Safety Mode S

ummer months bring copious amounts of joy each year. From camping and boating to backyard barbecues and picnics in the park, summer certainly provides the opportunity to create memories that will last a lifetime.

Unfortunately, summer also brings an increased risk of wildfire. The wildfire threat in the western United States has become more frequent and dangerous in recent years.

Since 2015, wildfires in Washington state have scorched more than two million acres. Homes and structures have been destroyed and, in some cases, lives have been lost. In 2020, we saw towns torched and tens of thousands of residents across the Pacific Northwest were left without power for

extended periods of time.

As we approach this year’s fire season, utilities, municipalities and local governments are working to create plans to keep everyone safe. At Inland Power, we pride ourselves in providing safe and reliable electric service. Safety is at the forefront of our minds as we enter what experts are predicting to be a hot and dry next few months.

Outage-Reducing Technology Along the power lines that bring electricity to your home, Inland Power has installed protective devices in the form of fuses and reclosers, which operate like circuit breakers. Fuses and reclosers serve the same purpose as the fuses and circuit breakers in your home.

When a fault occurs, and there is no

recloser connected, the fuse blows and everyone downstream from it loses power. Reclosers are devices that can operate a certain number of times before they stay open and an outage occurs. Here’s how that works. A tree limb contacts the power lines and creates a fault. The recloser senses it and opens, creating the first blink.

This is where a recloser differs from your home circuit breaker. It waits a certain amount of a time (typically a few seconds), then recloses to try and complete the circuit. If the fault is still there, it opens again. This creates the second blink. The most common setting allows the device to reclose a third time and if the fault is still there, it stays open and the members downstream experience a power outage.

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“OUR mission IS OUR

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members.”

Reducing Fire Risk In an effort to increase public safety and decrease fire risk, Inland Power has placed our system in fire safety mode. This means that we have placed our system in nonreclose status, meaning members could experience an increase in the frequency and duration of outages. This status will remain in place throughout the fire danger season.

water source, be sure you have a backup plan to keep your well connected to power.

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Ensure your First Aid kit is stocked with pain relievers, bandages and other medical essentials and make sure your prescriptions are current.

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Stock your pantry with a three-day supply of non-perishable food, such as canned goods, energy bars, peanut butter, powdered milk, instant coffee, water and other essentials (i.e., diapers and toiletries).

By putting our system in fire safety mode, we can reduce the frequency of an object coming into contact with an energized line.

Be Prepared There are multiple ways that you can be prepared should you find yourself in a summer power outage.

If you have a medical device that requires a power connection to operate, be sure you have a backup power source like a battery pack or generator. It can also be beneficial to make arrangements ahead of time to stay somewhere that has power still connected.

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For those who use a well as their

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Inland Power is my cooperative!

– M I S S I O N S TAT E M E N T

Set aside basic household items you will need, including flashlights, batteries, a manual can opener and a portable, battery-operated phone charger.

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Organize emergency supplies so they are easily accessible in one location.

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Be sure your car is fueled up in case you need to charge your devices in your vehicle.

In the event of a prolonged power outage, turn off major appliances, TVs, computers and other sensitive electronics. This will help avert damage from a power surge and will also help prevent overloading the circuits during power restoration. That said, do leave one light on so you will know when power is restored. If you plan to use a small generator, make sure it’s rated to handle the amount of power you will need, and always review the manufacturer’s instructions to operate it safely.

Inland Power Board Districts

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nfortunately, wildfire has become an expected part of life for many of us during the summer months. While many factors contribute to the increasing risk, there’s no denying that fires are larger and impacting more people than ever before.

Last year alone, 59,000 wildfires burned over 10 million acres throughout the United States.

As of 2019, an estimated 26 percent of homes in Idaho and 6 percent of homes in Washington were at risk of wildfire damage. Clearly, it is more important than ever to take action to keep your family and property safe.

It is also a good idea to leave a frozen cup of water in your freezer. Place a quarter of top of the ice. After power is restored, if the quarter is at the bottom of the cup, it could mean that the freezer thawed enough to spoil the food inside.

Make sure you have a plan for getting your family to safety and practice preparations. Be sure to include medications, clothes and copies of important documents in your emergency kit. If you have pets or livestock, consider how you will evacuate them. Add feed and supplies to your emergency kit, and prepare a way to identify animals if forced to turn them loose.

Advanced planning can reduce stress and anxiety caused by multiple or prolonged outages. At Inland Power, we recommend that you act today to ensure you are prepared should outages occur.

Protecting your home and property is all about creating defensible space. This means keeping a wildfire’s flames away from structures and keeping drifting embers from causing an ignition. Make sure easily ignited material like dead leaves and pine needles are removed from your roof and gutters, and remove flammables like mulch and firewood piles within 5 feet of buildings. Prevent embers from entering the home by covering vents with mesh screens, and make sure doors, windows and pet doors are sealed if forced to evacuate. Keep grasses mowed, remove dead vegetation and prune trees 6 to 10 feet up from the ground.

For questions reach out to our member services team by calling (509) 789-4277 or email inlandpower@inlandpower.com.

Board of Trustees

Gale Rettkoski District One Wilbur, WA

Inland Power right-of-way contract crews clear trees and brush from a path beneath power lines to reduce the risk of wildfire. This practice also improves safety of line crews who patrol the lines.

Wildfire preparedness

Kristina Bahr Board Treasurer District Four Spokane Valley, WA

Garry Rosman Chris Davis Board Vice President District Three District Two Nine Mile Falls, WA Davenport, WA

Randy Suess Board President District Five Cheney, WA

James Kroll Board Secretary District Six Colfax, WA

Brian Slaybaugh District Seven Pomeroy, WA

Visit firewise.org for much more information on how to prepare your home and property, and please stay safe this wildfire season!