Before the storm call: Five ways to know your utility fleet is ready

Storm season exposes every gap in a utility fleet: compressed timelines, temporary crew dynamics, lone workers at remote job sites, public pressure to restore power fast and maintaining documentation for FEMA reimbursement. The fleets that respond well make sure they’ve checked all the boxes on crew risk, lone worker safety and post-storm documentation.

Complete this fleet inspection checklist before the first call goes out.

Download the checklist here.

1. Validate asset readiness

• Confirm location and availability of all powered equipment, including generators, light towers, compressors and traffic control devices.
• Flag any vehicle with open maintenance items before it's assigned to a storm crew.
• Confirm fuel levels and staging locations for generators, bucket trucks and light towers before surge begins.
• Account for non-powered assets that get redeployed or go missing during surge without being logged.
• Verify utilization data so dispatchers know which assets have margin and which are already at capacity.
• Verify charge status and confirm route viability for any electric vehicles before assigning them to storm response.

Geotab's fleet management platform, MyGeotab, gives utility fleet managers a single view of every powered asset's location and status in near real-time before the surge begins. The GO Anywhere family of asset trackers extends that visibility to trailers, generators and portable equipment that don't have an OBD port. For fleets transitioning to EVs, Geotab Marketplace add-on MoveEV Open in new window uses actual vehicle data to verify route viability before surge deployment so electric assets are only assigned to routes they can complete.

2. Assess high-risk drivers before surge

• Review driver risk scores for all permanent crew before surge staffing begins to find those who need coaching before the response starts.
• For mutual-aid drivers, confirm safety records and licensing are on file before dispatch. Don't rely on verbal confirmation.
• Link trip data to individual mutual-aid drivers, not just the vehicle. Use in-cab driver identification so each trip is tied to a person, not an asset.
• Run a pre-storm coaching session for any driver flagged for fatigue patterns or distraction events.

Geotab's Collision Risk scoring uses historical trip data to flag the highest-risk permanent crew members before you need to redeploy them under surge conditions. GO Focus Plus, Geotab's AI dash cam, detects distraction, fatigue and tailgating events to identify drivers who need coaching before the response begins.

3. Implement lone worker protections

• Establish a check-in schedule for any technician assigned to a remote or off-grid site before the storm event starts.
• For workers beyond cellular range, deploy a contact solution that doesn't rely on stable cellular coverage.
• Review OSHA lone worker compliance requirements for your jurisdiction before storm season. Penalties for failure to maintain contact can reach $165,514.
• Test crews and dispatch on escalation protocols to help ensure everyone gets home safe.

OK Alone Open in new window, available through the Geotab Marketplace, provides automated check-ins, status reporting and emergency help requests for workers beyond cellular range, integrating directly with MyGeotab. When cellular infrastructure fails during a storm, GO Anywhere Plus, Geotab's asset tracker with satellite connectivity, keeps off-grid equipment visible to dispatchers.

4. Deploy live visibility

• Confirm all fleet vehicles and equipment are live and trackable before the storm event begins.
• Monitor driving behavior during the surge when unfamiliar roads and weather compound collision risk.
• Assign a dispatcher dedicated to monitoring asset and crew locations throughout the active storm response.
• Establish a handoff protocol for dispatcher shift changes during multi-day storm events.
• Log all incidents during the storm event in real time — post-storm reconstruction from memory is incomplete.

During active response, MyGeotab gives dispatchers a live map of every vehicle and crew position, with exception alerts for speeding, harsh braking and zone departures. Geotab's Safety Overview, a unified driver behavior dashboard, consolidates risk monitoring in one view so managers can act without switching between reports.

5. Plan the post-storm review

• Preserve dash cam footage and incident logs from the active response period for insurance claim documentation.
• Pull driver exception reports within 48 hours of the storm to identify coaching needs before crews disperse.
• Inspect all equipment returned from the field before reassigning. Storm conditions accelerate wear that doesn't show up in normal cycles.
• If a state of emergency is declared, export asset and trip records from your fleet management system immediately to support FEMA reimbursement claims.

You can pull MyGeotab trip records and driver exception reports within minutes of a storm event close, providing FEMA Public Assistance documentation and coaching prioritization before crews disperse. Geotab's Maintenance Overview flags any fault codes that emerged under storm conditions so your maintenance team can prioritize repairs before equipment is reassigned.

Preparation closes the gap

Storm response is a fleet safety program test run at surge capacity. The five steps above turn readiness into a verifiable state — one a fleet director can confirm before the first call, not reconstruct afterward.

Download our ebook, Storm-ready: 5 Utility fleet risks to close before storm season to discover what each vulnerability costs your fleet and how to find, measure and close each of these gaps.