Last month, Salt River Project announced that line workers based out of Tempe Service Center were working to provide electricity to families on the Navajo Nation in northeastern Arizona whose homes have never had power.
SRP, along with utility companies from 10 states across the United States, are volunteering in a collaborative effort known as “Light Up Navajo.” The American Public Power Association (APPA) and Navajo Tribal Utility Authority (NTUA) are organizers of the eight-week volunteer humanitarian effort. The goal is to electrify 300 homes during that time frame.Many elders on the Navajo Nation have waited a lifetime to have electricity in their homes, according to the SRP announcement, which means they lived without basics such as heating, air conditioning, a refrigerator or running water. Since starting to work last Monday, April 4, two SRP line crews, which total 10 employees, have worked 12-hour days and provided electricity to 20 homes so far.
Public power utilities like SRP are donating manpower, equipment and materials to help the Navajo Nation. The public is also invited to participate in the Light Up Navajo initiative by making cash or material donations. To learn more, visit www.publicpower.org/donate-light-navajo.
Following are images from the successful humanitarian project.