PNM updates commissioners on recent outages tied to weather-driven infrastructure failures

Representatives from PNM briefed the Alamogordo City Commission about a series of recent outages that the utility attributed to aggressive winds and rains that weakened wooden crossarms and caused multiple-span failures. Kevin Cardoza, PNM local government and community manager for southern New Mexico, and fuel operations supervisor Isaac Muncy described several outages that affected thousands of customers — including a multi-hour outage that affected roughly 3,400 customers — and said most failures were weather-driven and occurred during daytime hours, amplifying their visibility and impact. PNM said crews were patrolling and performing routine maintenance but that timing of storms, pre-soaked wood and morning winds produced failures in transmission spans between a substation and a sawmill; that configuration and daytime loading limited the ability to reroute power without creating additional rolling outages. PNM said mud and access issues slowed some restorations but that it staged extra crews and drew on cross-regional resources. PNM asked commissioners to use the company’s shared contacts for near-real-time updates during major outages and said the company is working to improve social-media and community communications while dealing with simultaneous outages elsewhere in the state. The company said about 24 support staff are assigned to Otero County with seven field linemen available to perform live-line repairs. No formal action was taken; commissioners thanked PNM for communications and urged continued outreach during large events.