U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn coordinated a personal power restoration timeline with NES CEO Teresa Broyles-Aplin, who then advocated for the senator internally, during Winter Storm Fern. Blackburn’s office contacted the utility’s CEO by phone on Tuesday, Jan. 27, two days after the destructive ice storm swept across Davidson County, asking for updates on the senator’s personal Brentwood residence as roughly 100,000 customers remained without electricity.
Our coverage of January's severe ice storm
Ice and freezing temperatures caused up to 230,000 outages at the storm’s peak as falling branches and entire trees disrupted power lines and blocked roadways. Blackburn’s neighborhood, which sits on the edge of the NES service area near the Davidson-Williamson county line, received attention from crews on Jan. 28, the day after her office contacted the CEO, according to power restoration maps and emails shared by the utility.
Broyles-Aplin personally advocated for her Brentwood residence after a phone conversation on the evening of Jan. 27, according to emails obtained via public records request and reviewed by the Scene. The CEO confirmed with NES operations manager Kevin Phelps, her employee, that Blackburn’s neighborhood was an upcoming priority and sought specific updates for the senator. Broyles-Aplin also followed up the next day.
“I just got off the phone with Senator Blackburn’s office," Broyles-Aplin wrote to Phelps on Jan. 27. "They are wanting information on when her power might be restored. I looked up her circuit, and (if I am looking at it correctly) it is on our top 20 list now. It has just not been assigned. I know you may have no idea on timing, but I wanted to see if there was anything your team could tell me.”
In emails, Broyles-Aplin did not specify whether she was communicating with Blackburn’s taxpayer-funded U.S. Senate office or a campaign office, the latter of which is funded by donors. The next day, Broyles-Aplin contacted a system supervisor for more information on Blackburn’s behalf, writing at 6:49 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 28: “I wanted to follow up on the status of Senator Blackburn’s home. Any updates?”
The employee, a system supervisor, explained that his crew could not get to Blackburn’s specific street because of a broken pole and extensive power line damage.
“I totally understand," wrote Broyles-Aplin. "Just keep me posted.”
Fifty minutes later, Phelps responded that he had intervened and that a crew was back in her neighborhood.
“They have a crew out there working tonight,” wrote Phelps. “No guarantees that her house will come back on, but we are actively working on it.”
The Senate reconvened that week, indicating that Blackburn may have been back in D.C., rather than in her Brentwood home, by 3 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 26. Two days later, Blackburn publicly criticized Broyles-Aplin for NES’ inadequate response to the storm. In a lengthy letter dated Jan. 30, the senator asks about various aspects of NES’ storm preparedness and whether customers will be reimbursed for hotel stays.
"NES routinely communicates with public officials at the local, state, and federal levels during major outage events because our customers are also their constituents," an NES spokesperson tells the Scene. "We are especially grateful to public officials for their coordination during Winter Storm Fern, which required a state of emergency declaration, a subsequent federal disaster declaration, and ongoing work with FEMA."
A request for comment from Blackburn's office has not been returned.
