SEARCH SITE

VIRGINIA LAW PORTAL

SEARCHABLE DATABASES

ACROSS SESSIONS

Developed and maintained by the Division of Legislative Automated Systems.

1996 SESSION

966008412
HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 324
Offered February 12, 1996
Commending Virginia Power.
----------

Patrons-- Purkey, Abbitt, Albo, Barlow, Behm, Bennett, Bloxom, Bryant, Callahan, Cantor, Christian, Clement, Cooper, Councill, Cox, Cranwell, Crittenden, Croshaw, Crouch, Cunningham, Davies, Deeds, Dickinson, Dillard, Drake, Dudley, Fisher, Forbes, Guest, Hamilton, Hargrove, Harris, Heilig, Howell, Ingram, Jackson, Jones, J.C., Katzen, Kilgore, Landes, Marshall, McDonnell, McEachin, Melvin, Moore, Moran, Morgan, Murphy, Nelms, Nixon, O'Brien, Orrock, Parrish, Phillips, Puller, Putney, Reid, Reynolds, Rhodes, Robinson, Rollison, Ruff, Scott, Sherwood, Spruill, Stump, Tata, Tate, Thomas, Van Landingham, Van Yahres, Wagner, Wardrup, Watkins, Watts, Way, Weatherholtz, Wilkins and Woodrum; Senators: Barry, Benedetti, Bolling, Earley, Hawkins, Miller, K.G., Stolle, Stosch, Trumbo, Wampler and Woods
----------
Consent to introduce
----------

WHEREAS, on February 2 and 3, 1996, Virginia was crippled by one of the most severe snow and ice storms of the decade; and

WHEREAS, snow, sleet, and freezing rain caused increasingly widespread power outages in eastern Virginia, beginning at 10:00 a.m. Friday and peaking at 8:00 a.m. Saturday; and

WHEREAS, this power outage affected some 140,000 residents of eastern Virginia, including the Cities of Chesapeake, Hampton, Newport News, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Suffolk, and Virginia Beach; and

WHEREAS, Virginia Power requested over 300 additional employees from other parts of the state, 140 contract workers, and over 100 tree trimmers to assist in the repair effort; and

WHEREAS, some 475 Virginia Power employees and an additional 325 support personnel worked 16-hour shifts around the clock throughout the weekend to restore vital electric service to the citizens of the area; and

WHEREAS, approximately 100,000 of those citizens in the Hampton Roads area had their power fully restored within a 24-hour period, and most of the remainder had their service restored by Monday, February 5; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly commend the employees of Virginia Power for their courageous and determined efforts during extreme conditions to restore vital electric service to those citizens of the Commonwealth who lost electricity during this severe winter storm.