Every phase of storm response contains elements of surprise. A storm may shift its path affecting the crews who are mobilizing and the utilities receiving them. Roads may be washed out. Hotels without power. Downed trees on live wires. Non-local crews on a foreign system interacting with unfamiliar utility personnel. At Lewis, during both blue sky and storm events, we use formal and informal After Action Reviews as opportunities to have a conversation about what happened, what surprised us, what we learned, and more.

In this session, we will discuss how Lewis crews are purposely taking the time to reflect and share their experiences from different perspectives to deepen learning, “make risk real,” accelerate expertise in situations of extreme unpredictability, and strengthen teams who may be working together for the first time. We'll share how we are using AARs to check the pulse of our system in real-time, discover hidden risks, and share learnings among the storm responders and leadership teams to create safety.