Officials say National Guard focused on debris removal; call for clearer NES restoration data as outages persist
January 29, 2026 | Davidson County, Tennessee
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City officials addressed questions Friday about the pace of power restoration, National Guard deployment and FEMA support after an ice storm that caused widespread outages.
Mayor O'Connell said there had been "no delays" in National Guard mobilization and that Guard members have been working in Nashville since the previous afternoon to assist with power-restoration logistics. "There are National Guard working actively in, Nashville since yesterday afternoon, and there have been no delays," he said.
Director Chief William Swan clarified the Guard's mission: "The guard's mission is to assist and help... to move, remove, brush and trees out of the way," he said, adding the Guard is not running shelters or conducting welfare checks in Davidson County. Swan said Guard activity is intended to clear paths so NES line crews can safely access damaged infrastructure.
Reporters pressed the mayor about expectations for NES communications and restoration timelines. O'Connell said NES had already restored power to more than 140,000 customers but that "about 90,000" remained without power as of the briefing; he also said the number of damaged utility poles had risen above 400. "We need NES to help us understand which communities they're in, how much work is actually being done, how difficult the circumstances on the ground are at each outage site," he said, urging NES to provide data and visuals.
On federal assistance, O'Connell said the governor submitted an expedited disaster declaration request and that he had spoken with members of the congressional delegation; he did not know whether FEMA had approved the request and said the city would follow up with state and federal partners.
Officials said requests for National Guard support must follow established procedures through NDOT/TDOT and NES so that resources are dispatched safely and in coordination, and that once a formal request is transmitted additional Guard personnel can be brought in as needed.
Mayor O'Connell said there had been "no delays" in National Guard mobilization and that Guard members have been working in Nashville since the previous afternoon to assist with power-restoration logistics. "There are National Guard working actively in, Nashville since yesterday afternoon, and there have been no delays," he said.
Director Chief William Swan clarified the Guard's mission: "The guard's mission is to assist and help... to move, remove, brush and trees out of the way," he said, adding the Guard is not running shelters or conducting welfare checks in Davidson County. Swan said Guard activity is intended to clear paths so NES line crews can safely access damaged infrastructure.
Reporters pressed the mayor about expectations for NES communications and restoration timelines. O'Connell said NES had already restored power to more than 140,000 customers but that "about 90,000" remained without power as of the briefing; he also said the number of damaged utility poles had risen above 400. "We need NES to help us understand which communities they're in, how much work is actually being done, how difficult the circumstances on the ground are at each outage site," he said, urging NES to provide data and visuals.
On federal assistance, O'Connell said the governor submitted an expedited disaster declaration request and that he had spoken with members of the congressional delegation; he did not know whether FEMA had approved the request and said the city would follow up with state and federal partners.
Officials said requests for National Guard support must follow established procedures through NDOT/TDOT and NES so that resources are dispatched safely and in coordination, and that once a formal request is transmitted additional Guard personnel can be brought in as needed.
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