As hurricane season approaches, Florida Power & Light, the Sunshine State's dominant utility, is ramping up preparations with a dose of imagination, running drills this week for a fake category 4 storm named "Hurricane Benito." The mock hurricane, wielding 135 mph winds, targeted Miami and Fort Lauderdale in a simulated assault, pushing the company's response plans to the test, WSVN reports.

Despite the sunny weather, the shadow of past calamities lingers, with FPL's simulation echoing the ravages of real hurricanes, like Ian which, in 2022 devastated the Gulf Coast near Fort Myers leading to 150 deaths, and left millions without power. The orchestrated chaos of Benito serves a grim reminder of nature's unpredictable fury, as it hypothetically plowed through areas still bearing the scars of its predecessors. "Every day we don’t have a storm is a day we are preparing for one," FPL’s vice president of power delivery, Ed DeVarona, told TheSpec.com.

The National Hurricane Center has issued forecasts predicting an above-average storm season, with potential for at least three major hurricanes to emerge from the annual turbulent ballet of Atlantic and Gulf weather systems. However, not every brewing storm reaches landfall, leaving communities to grapple with the enigma of if and when they might face the daunting task of rebuilding once again.

Responding to these simulated outages, FPL crews hunkered down in their emergency operations center, strategizing over computer-generated crises. The drills employed advanced technologies for rapid response, including sensors that detect power losses in real time and drones for aerial assessment, allowing for pinpoint precision in repair dispatch, noted Mike Ochoa, a senior line specialist. "I can honestly say that each of these tools ... make it easier for line workers like myself," Ochoa, said in a statement obtained by WSVN. Reinforcing their readiness, FPL has bolstered infrastructure resilience by burying more lines underground, and fortifying above-ground wires with metal or concrete, rather than wood, thus reducing the specter of extensive repairs post-storm.

With 12 million people in its care, Florida’s humbling geography—a stretch of land caught between the embrace of the Atlantic and the Gulf, bears witness to FPL's meticulous preparations.