Conway, South Carolina is a charming river town experiencing rapid growth in population, economic opportunity, and development.
January 15, 2025
minute read time
Conway, South Carolina is a charming river town experiencing rapid growth in population, economic opportunity, and development. However, this expansion also brings some challenges with increased strain on its infrastructure, resulting in a potential for frequent power outages caused by storms, car accidents, and even the occasional wildlife. For Horry County Emergency Management Director Randy Webster, a resilient grid is essential to keep the community safe when storms strike, especially for emergency shelters during hurricane season. These outages can also result in significant inconvenience and disruption to day-to-day life, including for local businesses like Russell Davis's popular barbecue restaurant, Big D's BBQ Trough, which can translate to lost revenue and missed opportunities to provide the community a warm meal.
However, there's good news on the horizon. Thanks to funding from the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Grid Deployment Office (GDO) through the Grid Resilience State and Tribal Formula Grants program. Conway’s utility provider, Horry Electric Cooperative, is upgrading its power grid with automated switches. These new switches will allow for faster power restoration, reducing outages from hours to minutes, and keep the grid balanced during disruptions.
Kevin Jordan, a manager of engineering with Horry Electric Cooperative, highlights the project’s impact: “It’s a game-changer for our community. We’re providing safer, more reliable power.” This upgrade is critical, especially for emergency shelters during hurricane season. As Horry County Emergency Management Director Randy Webster notes, “A resilient grid is essential to keep the community safe when storms strike.”
This project is a great example of how collaboration between local and federal entities results in meaningful growth in economic opportunities, improved quality of life, and increased public safety for the communities they serve.
Want to learn more? Check out our video to hear directly from the people behind this project: Powering Communities: Upgrading the Grid in Horry County.
Visit our Grid Resilience State and Tribal Formula Grants page for more information about funding opportunities and investments that are helping strengthen and modernize America’s power grid to help fuel economic growth and overall community quality of life. Stay plugged in with us as we continue to share the powerful work happening across the Grid Deployment Office by subscribing to our blogs and connecting with us on Facebook and LinkedIn.