Nashville council announces 9‑member review of storm power response, directs residents to support resources
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Summary
City leaders announced a mayoral commission to examine utility and city storm response after widespread outages, urged medically vulnerable residents to register for a priority list, and scheduled a joint committee meeting on Feb. 10 to review the response.
The Metropolitan Council used the announcements period to outline steps following an unprecedented storm that left large numbers of Nashville residents without power.
Pro Tem said the mayor has appointed a nine‑member commission of community leaders and experts in utility infrastructure, emergency response and crisis communication to investigate whether Nashville Electric Service or the city could have been better prepared. "This commission will investigate if there was anything that NES or the city could have done to be better prepared," the Pro Tem said, adding that "the commission's initial report is due no later than six months after the first meeting." Vice Mayor Angie Henderson and the Pro Tem were named to the commission.
Council members emphasized short‑term supports for residents still dealing with outages. Pro Tem thanked line workers and city staff "working to restore power" and directed residents to the city's resource hub at nashville.gov. Council member Sarora reminded medically vulnerable residents to enroll in NES's life‑support priority list at nestpower.com/life-support so they receive priority during outages.
Council member Benedict said outages have fallen to a few hundred and urged anyone still without service to contact their council office; he also noted a joint committee meeting about the storm response scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 10. Several council members and staff thanked neighborhood volunteers, nonprofit partners and city departments for relief efforts, naming organizations assisting with meal distribution, warming centers and temporary shelter.
The commission will review preparation and response, including NES operations and Metro agency coordination; its timeline and membership were announced during the meeting. The council scheduled follow‑up oversight through a Feb. 10 joint committee meeting; the commission's written report is due within six months of its first meeting.
