Nashville Electric Service (NES) had only 160 linemen ready to work before Winter Storm Fern, according to new reporting published on Tuesday, despite the company publicly claiming it had more than twice that number available at the beginning of the storm.
According to WSMV 4, citing internal NES documents obtained by the Nashville television station, just 160 linemen were listed as activated within internal NES systems on January 25. Though the number rose to 300 at 8 a.m. on the next day, it would not reach 600 until 10 p.m. that night, well after the company publicly asserted that 345 linemen were ready to respond to the damage caused by Winter Storm Fern.
The outlet reported that NES did not respond to its request to clarify the apparent contradiction in the number of linemen activated ahead of the storm.
Though NES acknowledged a Wednesday press inquiry, The Tennessee Star likewise did not receive a response prior to publication when asked how many of the 345 linemen were apprentices, who though experienced, still needed training before they could perform repairs independently.
In addition to the low number of linemen activated, WSMV 4 also reported that NES also ran out of power at some point during its response to the storm, requiring the company to order more to continue restoring service for customers. The outlet reported NES ultimately ordered 809 poles during the recovery process.
The Star asked NES how many power poles the municipally owned utility had on hand prior to the storm, and when an order was last placed prior to Winter Storm Fern, but did not receive a response before publication.
In a response to a previous inquiry, NES confirmed to The Star last month that CEO Teresa Broyles-Aplin receives more than $650,000 in annual compensation for her work at the company. In their Tuesday reporting, WSMV 4 additionally revealed that Broyles-Aplin receives a $700-per-month allowance to pay for a vehicle.
Vice President Brent Baker receives an identical vehicle allowance, according to the outlet. It also reported his annual compensation is over $471,000.
The company did not confirm these details when asked by The Star on Wednesday.
NES recently contracted two Nashville law firms to oversee the completion of a review of the company’s response to the storm. A preliminary report is scheduled to be complete in late May, and on Tuesday the Metro Nashville Council announced it would defer action on a resolution to call for Broyles-Aplin to be fired until June 2.
Republican leaders in the Tennessee General Assembly confirmed last month that lawmakers were considering action targeting NES and its governance structure, but suggested they were waiting to see the Metro Council’s response.
The reported contradiction between the company’s public claims and its internal records surfaces as NES has yet to explain the company’s claims that its tree trimming budget repeatedly increased in recent years, in contradiction of an annual report, which shows NES slashed tree trimming spending by $7 million in 2024.
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Tom Pappert is a 2025 recipient of the Dao Prize and the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star. He also reports for the Star News Network. Follow Tom on X. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Nashville Electric Service Worker” by Nashville Electric Service.
Management incompetence knows no bounds.
How can they justify someone running a public utility making more than the governor of the state. This is just ridiculous and on top of that they were incompetent. Both of them need to be canned immediately.