Business : Alliant Energy helps to rebuild derecho-impacted communities

At Alliant Energy, our purpose is to serve customers and build strong communities. That purpose guides our work every day.

One year ago, on August 10, 2020, a derecho swept across our state. It left a trail of destruction and widespread power outages. It was a day many of us will never forget. It was also a day that our purpose came to life.

The unprecedented storm knocked out power to a quarter of a million of our customers in 341 Iowa communities.

Crews immediately began working day and night to restore power as quickly and safely as possible - remaining focused on our customers and the communities they live in. Our focus on customers and communities started before the derecho and certainly did not end once the lights came back on.

While we all hope never to experience another derecho or other major storm ripping through our communities, we are prepared and work every day to ensure customers' energy needs are met.

Over the past year, we've strengthened the repairs we made soon after the storm and inspected each impacted circuit.

Our team works hard to ensure the grid is strong and resilient. The grid has performed very well through several storm events we have experienced after the derecho.

In addition to keeping the lights on, we will continue to assist in the rebuilding and recovery efforts in communities we serve across the state.

One example is how we are helping to restore the tree canopy that was lost due to the storm. Alliant Energy plans to plant one million trees in our service area over the next 10 years. That's about one tree for each of our customers. Not only are the new trees a sign of rebuilding and new growth, but they also will naturally reduce greenhouse gases, improve water quality and provide wildlife habitat.

On behalf of Alliant Energy, thank you to our customers. We understand it's been difficult as you've rebuilt your homes and businesses. You've remained incredibly resilient, patient and understanding.

As we continue to live our purpose to serve customers and build strong communities, we remain committed to providing the safe and reliable service you - our customers - count on.