New Orleans, La. – Answering a call for help from electricity providers in the northeast United States, Entergy operating companies are sending 305 linemen plus support personnel to the region in anticipation of a massive restoration effort following landfall of Hurricane Sandy.

Forecasts call for widespread high winds to begin Monday night and not dissipate until Wednesday evening. Entergy crews will depart from their respective service centers in Arkansas, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas on Saturday, moving toward the Northeast. Specific destinations will be determined by where the damage is.

About 115 Entergy linemen from Louisiana will be helping Philadelphia-based PECO. Sixty linemen from Arkansas, 47 from Mississippi and 40 from Texas will help Pepco Holdings, Inc., which serves about 2 million customers in Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maryland and New Jersey.

“We’re committed to be there for our fellow electricity providers in the Northeast, just as other companies came to help us when Hurricane Isaac slammed the Gulf Coast in August,” said Greg Grillo, who coordinates Entergy’s storm response. “We have a well-practiced, well-used system of mutual support, and it’s absolutely essential to restore power following widespread damage like we expect Hurricane Sandy to cause.”

Entergy Corporation is an integrated energy company engaged primarily in electric power production and retail distribution operations. Entergy owns and operates power plants with approximately 30,000 megawatts of electric generating capacity, including more than 10,000 megawatts of nuclear power, making it one of the nation’s leading nuclear generators. Entergy delivers electricity to 2.8 million utility customers in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. Entergy has annual revenues of more than $11 billion and approximately 15,000 employees.