When a major storm approaches the U.S., the race to restore electricity begins long before crews arrive at a damaged power line.
Utilities prepare workers, equipment and supplies ahead of severe weather, while the industry’s mutual assistance system allows companies to request additional crews from other regions when local resources are not enough. During major disasters, that can mean moving thousands of lineworkers across state lines to areas where restoration work is expected.
For the linemen making those trips, however, there is another challenge: knowing where the work will be.
Storm-restoration opportunities have traditionally moved through a fragmented network of contractors, phone calls, text messages, social media groups and word of mouth. By the time information reaches an available lineman, a crew may already have been assembled or the most practical opportunity to travel may have passed.
That information gap is now becoming a target for software companies trying to digitize parts of the storm-response process.
KYRO AI is entering that space with Storm Call Center, a free application designed to give linemen a nationwide, real-time view of where storm-restoration work is likely to develop.
“For too long, linemen, who are the frontline people that the storm response industry arguably relies on most, have been among the last to hear when and where they’re needed,” said Hari Vasudevan, Founder and CEO of KYRO AI.
Turning storm forecasts into potential restoration work
The U.S. electric industry already has established systems for mobilizing workers after major weather events. Edison Electric Institute describes mutual assistance as a voluntary network through which utilities affected by major outages can request skilled workers and specialized equipment from companies in other regions.
The scale of those mobilizations can be considerable. During Hurricane Helene in 2024, more than 50,000 utility personnel from 41 states, Washington, D.C., and Canada participated in the response, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.
The challenge is not simply moving those workers. It is coordinating information about where they may be needed.
Storm Call Center is designed to operate earlier in that process. The application provides storm-call likelihood ratings at the state, county and utility levels, classifying potential restoration demand as low, moderate or high. It also provides storm-path overlays and allows users to center the map on their current location.
Linemen can opt into SMS notifications for regions they are interested in and receive alerts when predicted calls become available. When a live storm call appears, they can express interest directly through the application.
The distinction from a conventional outage map is central to the product. Outage information shows where electricity has already been disrupted. Storm Call Center is designed to identify where restoration work is likely to emerge and connect available workers with those opportunities.
That can be particularly relevant for so-called “tramping” linemen, who travel between regions following restoration opportunities. Their work depends not only on technical skills and availability, but also on receiving information early enough to make the trip worthwhile.
KYRO AI says the application is intended to reduce the time linemen spend searching across different sources for information about potential calls.
The application is available nationwide across the United States through desktop and mobile web, as well as iOS and Android.
From finding a storm call to managing the response
Storm Call Center is positioned as a companion to KYRO AI’s broader platform rather than a standalone replacement for the company’s existing tools.
Once a lineman opts into a live call, the KYRO AI platform can support the subsequent stages of the response, including profiles, crew rosters and status updates. The platform also covers timesheets, expenses, invoicing and funding, according to the company.
That creates a workflow that starts before a restoration crew is assembled and continues through the administrative work that follows deployment.
The approach reflects a broader effort to connect the different pieces of storm response digitally. A potential call first has to be identified, workers have to be found and organized, crews have to be deployed, hours and expenses have to be documented, and contractors ultimately need to invoice for completed work.
KYRO AI says its platform brings utilities, contractors, linemen and working-capital providers into the same system. The company says it has supported more than $250 billion in program value across essential U.S. infrastructure initiatives.
Storm Call Center adds another layer to that system by moving information closer to the workers themselves.
Instead of requiring linemen to wait for a contractor or another contact to tell them where restoration work is developing, the application gives them a way to monitor potential demand directly.
The product also illustrates how storm-response technology is expanding beyond the utility control room. Forecasting systems, outage maps and utility communications have traditionally focused on helping organizations understand the condition of the grid. Tools such as Storm Call Center are aimed at the workforce that ultimately carries out the physical restoration.
As severe weather events continue to require large-scale coordination between utilities and external crews, the speed at which information moves through that system becomes part of the restoration process itself.
For KYRO AI, the new application is an attempt to shorten that information chain: from a storm developing on a forecast map, to a potential restoration call, to the linemen who can travel to the affected area and begin the work.
Disclosure: This article mentions a client of an Espacio portfolio company.
