Entergy Mississippi recently used an aerial saw towed by a helicopter to trim trees and help improve reliability along 46 miles of distribution power lines in rural Hinds County.

The project focused on removing tree limbs that pose a danger of falling onto power lines during storms. Curtis Robertson, operations coordinator for Entergy Mississippi’s vegetation support team, said the aerial saw project helps improve reliability and reduces the exposure of employees to hazardous work in remote areas.

“The most important things we consider are the safety of our crew members, using this tool to keep the power on for our customers and managing costs of our work to help keep rates low for customers,” Robertson said.

The company communicated in advance with customers along the route about planned, temporary power outages on weekdays during the project’s duration to allow the work to be performed safely and on time.

“One of the best ways to reduce interruption to electric service is by maintaining adequate clearance between power lines and trees,” said Kamisha Quates, vice president, reliability, Entergy Mississippi. “This project helps us make a positive difference over many miles where our customers live.”

The aerial saw is one of several advanced technologies Entergy is using to improve reliability and resilience in our system. Where appropriate, we’re using drone aircraft to identify damage and speed restoration after storms. We’re also exploring ways to use artificial intelligence to predict and address transformer equipment failures before they interrupt power.

Mississippi Public Service Commissioner De’Keither Stamps, who represents the Central District, visited the project site and observed safety briefings and portions of the aerial tree-trimming work.

Stamps was impressed by the coordination among Entergy crews and the contract helicopter crew to “do something that’s never been done before on a distribution line in Mississippi.”  He said he was glad that customers in Hinds County won’t have to worry as much about outages “every time a storm comes.”

The helicopter-based aerial saw completed in about a month tree trimming that could have taken much longer to complete with ground-based equipment. It also reduced the exposure of ground-based crews to safety hazards often present in remote rural areas. Entergy uses same technique to protect miles of high-voltage transmission lines.

The Arbor Day Foundation has repeatedly named Entergy a Tree Line USA utility, recognizing our commitment to proper tree pruning, planting and care in our service area.