Are you Prepared to be Shocked by Lightning Damage?

Murfreesboro, TN – Lightning Safety Awareness Week is June 19-25, which is primetime for electricity in the atmosphere. According to State Farm® Insurance, Tennessee ranked sixth nationwide in lightning claims in 2015.

Policyholders filed 791 claims statewide at a cost of $5.7 million. The good news is that there are some simple things you can do to protect yourself and your property.

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Hot Weather Heats Up Demand for TVA Power

Knoxville, TN — With above-normal temperatures expected throughout the summer across the Southeast, the Tennessee Valley Authority is encouraging consumers to use electricity wisely.

“While we understand air-conditioning is a necessity, increasing your thermostat a few degrees can still keep you comfortable while saving you a few dollars each month,” said Robert Balzar, vice president of Energy Efficiency and Demand Response. “Also, turning off unnecessary lights and appliances will help considerably in reducing peak energy demand across the region.”

Other energy-saving tips include using the “sleep mode” on computers, keeping curtains closed during the day, and operating dishwashers and laundry machines only with full loads and only after 8:00pm.

Residential electricity use in the TVA region ranks among the highest in the nation, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. In 2008, Tennesseans ranked No. 1, consuming an average 1,302 kilowatt-hours a month, compared with a national average of 920 kilowatt-hours. [Read more]

Costly Lightning Losses can be Prevented

*In Support of National Lightning Safety Awareness Week, June 20th-26th, 2010

Hartford, CT — Hurricanes and tornadoes receive the news coverage, but according to Underwriters Laboratories (UL), lightning accounts for more than one billion dollars annually in structural damage to buildings in the U.S. alone. A single bolt of lightning can generate heat in excess of 50,000 degrees F which can spark fires or cause surging through electrical circuitry. Packing up to 100 million volts of electricity, a lightning strike to an unprotected home or business can be disastrous, with lightning most often igniting roofs, sidewalls, framing and electrical wires. According to the Insurance Information Institute (I.I.I.), insured losses from lightning continue to climb, with the average cost per claim up 39 percent over the past five years. A single lightning strike can cost a homeowner over $5,000, with losses ranging from damage to expensive electronics to structural fires that destroy entire homes. [Read more]

Environmental Group Responds to BP Oil Spill

Nashville, TN — The Sustainable Tennessee coalition will discuss the Oil Spill disaster in the Gulf of Mexico and develop recommendations for actions Tennessee residents can take in response to this crisis at a meeting to be scheduled this August in Nashville.

“This is the one of worst environmental disasters our nation has faced, and it has direct impact for residents of Tennessee,” said Don Safer, Board Chair for the Tennessee Environmental Council. “Tennesseans are concerned and outraged about the situation. We have a huge number of residents who moved here after Hurricane Katrina, and many of us have family and friends in the Gulf area, so it is truly personal for us.”

Sustainable Tennessee was founded in 2007 and created a statewide Sustainability Agenda from the input of a broad coalition of citizens, conservation groups, environmental policy experts, elected officials, and representatives of private businesses, industry, and educational institutions. “We believe the crisis in the Gulf is a call to Tennesseans to be more serious about changing the way we live to a more sustainable lifestyle,” said Mary Mastin, Board Secretary, Tennessee Environmental Council, “And the Sustainable Tennessee Agenda is a roadmap to get there.” [Read more]