Florida Retailers Prepare For Storm Season With Generators

ELFERS, FL – The 2010 hurricane season could generate a lot of sound and fury, forecasters predict, but Bob Damm and Valdo Santiago think their Winn-Dixie supermarket is ready to weather most power outages.

That's because the store can generate a lot of power on its own. A massive diesel-powered generator sits behind the store at State Road 54 and Madison Street.

The 500-kilowatt generator could keep the entire supermarket operating for up to five days at a time, freezers and all, before it needs refueling, store director Damm said.

Damm and Santiago, the store co-director, recently inspected the mammoth machine, which automatically runs a weekly diagnostic test. The Cummins Power generator and its fuel tank are about the length of a small semi-truck trailer.

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