Choctawhatchee Electric Cooperative, Inc.

Choctawhatchee Electric Cooperative, Inc. This page includes reports of major power outages. It is not monitored for member outage reports. The result was Choctawhatchee Electric Cooperative (CHELCO).

Although most cities had electricity by the mid-1930s, rural Americans were still in the dark. The high cost of building electric distribution lines to serve sparsely populated rural areas was not economical. Then in 1941, with the support of the Rural Electric Administration's oversight and low interest loans, the people of Northwest Florida decided to band together to form a member-owned, not-fo

r-profit utility that would benefit its members. Later that same year, CHELCO members met with 10 other electric cooperatives and formed Alabama Electric Cooperative (now PowerSouth Energy Cooperative), a generation and transmission cooperative established to generate the electricity needed by its member co-ops. Today, CHELCO is headquartered in DeFuniak Springs, and our service territory encompasses mainly Walton and Okaloosa counties, in addition to portions of western Holmes and eastern Santa Rosa counties.

Need directions to CHELCO's new Freeport office?đź“Ť 359 Co. Hwy. 83A West, Freeport, FL 32439A helpful landmark is the new...
09/01/2026

Need directions to CHELCO's new Freeport office?đź“Ť 359 Co. Hwy. 83A West, Freeport, FL 32439

A helpful landmark is the new traffic light located approximately 0.4 miles west of the main Hammock Bay entrance on Highway 20. Turn onto Co. Hwy. 83A West (West Bay Loop) at the traffic light and continue for approximately one-third of a mile. The CHELCO office will be on the left-hand side of the road.

For turn-by-turn directions, enter 359 Co. Hwy. 83A West, Freeport, FL 32439 into your GPS or navigation app. If your navigation app doesn't take you to the correct location, make sure you entered "West" in the address. If you still have trouble finding us, please contact Member Services for assistance.

Temperatures are rising—but your summer energy bill doesn’t have to. Here are some dos and don’ts to keep you cool:👍 Do:...
08/29/2026

Temperatures are rising—but your summer energy bill doesn’t have to. Here are some dos and don’ts to keep you cool:

đź‘Ť Do: use fans to cool your home; they can lower the heat sensation in a room by as much as 6 degrees.
👎 Don’t: leave fans running when you’re not in the room.

🚔🚒⚡Safety starts with awareness. CHELCO employees recently participated in a safety training at CHELCO Headquarters alon...
08/27/2026

🚔🚒⚡Safety starts with awareness. CHELCO employees recently participated in a safety training at CHELCO Headquarters alongside representatives from the Walton County Sheriff's Office, Florida, and Walton County Fire Rescue, Florida.

As part of CHELCO's ongoing commitment to safety, employees learned about the dangers of distracted driving, its real-world consequences, and practical ways to stay focused behind the wheel.

🚨 We’re open! 🚨CHELCO’s new Freeport Member Services Center is officially open and ready to serve you at📍359 Co. Hwy. 83...
08/25/2026

🚨 We’re open! 🚨

CHELCO’s new Freeport Member Services Center is officially open and ready to serve you at📍359 Co. Hwy. 83A West, Freeport, FL 32439.

Stop by to pay your bill, ask questions, start service, or simply check out our brand-new office. We’re excited to welcome members to our new location and continue providing the local service you know and trust.

Learn more about our new office at CHELCO.com!

As a reminder, our Freeport Member Services Center at Freeport City Hall will close at noon today as we complete our mov...
08/24/2026

As a reminder, our Freeport Member Services Center at Freeport City Hall will close at noon today as we complete our move.

We’re excited to welcome members to our new location beginning tomorrow at 7:30 AM.

đź“Ť 359 Co. Hwy. 83A West, Freeport, FL 32439

For details about this transition, visit CHELCO.com.

CHELCO’s Freeport Member Services Center is moving from Freeport City Hall to our new location at 359 Co. Hwy. 83A West,...
08/21/2026

CHELCO’s Freeport Member Services Center is moving from Freeport City Hall to our new location at 359 Co. Hwy. 83A West, Freeport, FL 32439.

đź“… New location opens: Tuesday, Aug. 25
🕢 Hours: Monday–Thursday, 7:30 AM–4:30 PM; every other Friday, 7:30 AM–4 PM

⚠️ Freeport City Hall location closes: Monday, Aug. 24, at noon. We’ll reopen at 7:30 AM Tuesday at our new location.

đź’ł Payment kiosks:
• City Hall kiosk remains available through Sept. 1
• New location kiosk begins service Aug. 25

Visit CHELCO.com for more information.

🚗🏆 At CHELCO, safety is more than a priority. It's part of our culture. 🏆🚗 We're proud to recognize Joseph Gates, Kevin ...
08/21/2026

🚗🏆 At CHELCO, safety is more than a priority. It's part of our culture. 🏆🚗 We're proud to recognize Joseph Gates, Kevin Wilkerson, Duane Craft, and Jonathon Everett for earning 500-Mile Club honors by achieving perfect safety scores in the Samsara Driver App throughout the second quarter.

These employees, representing Operations, Metering, and Information Technology, demonstrated an outstanding commitment to safe driving practices while serving our members and communities.

Please join us in congratulating these team members for setting the standard for safety and helping ensure everyone makes it home safely each day. đź‘Ź

🚨UPDATE 8:30 P.M. - Our crews have reduced outages to just 9 active outages affecting 36 members. We appreciate your pat...
08/19/2026

🚨UPDATE 8:30 P.M. - Our crews have reduced outages to just 9 active outages affecting 36 members. We appreciate your patience as lineworkers, operations personnel, and support staff continue working to restore power safely and quickly to the remaining affected members.
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UPDATE 6:30 P.M. - Our restoration efforts are making steady progress. At this time, approximately 17 outages are affecting 1,800 members. Thanks to additional staff in the field, including our "bird dogs" who have been patrolling power lines and identifying outage causes, crews have been able to locate problems more quickly and restore service more efficiently. Crews will remain in the field until power has been restored to all affected members.
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🌩️ Unless you're hunkered down in a bunker like our Energy Control Center operators, you've seen the weather rolling across Northwest Florida. These storms are creating scattered outages throughout CHELCO's service area.

Our line crews and system operators are monitoring conditions and responding to outages as quickly and safely as possible.

To stay informed:
📱 Report outages through the CHELCO app
🖥️ Check the outage map for updates: https://outageview.chelco.com:8080/
⚠️ Stay away from downed power lines and flooded areas

Thank you for your patience and support as we work to restore service.

Hurricane season is here. If you experience an outage, be sure to practice generator safety and follow all manufacturer ...
08/19/2026

Hurricane season is here. If you experience an outage, be sure to practice generator safety and follow all manufacturer operating instructions. Plugging a generator into a wall outlet or your home's wiring can energize power lines and injure you or others working nearby.

Update - 9:30 PM: Crews continue to make repairs to damages caused by heavy wind, rain, and lightning. At this time, sca...
08/18/2026

Update - 9:30 PM: Crews continue to make repairs to damages caused by heavy wind, rain, and lightning. At this time, scattered outages are impacting just over 400 members throughout the northern portion of our service area.

7:30 PM: 554 members are still impacted by outages. Crews continue working to restore power.

We are currently experiencing scattered outages impacting more than 800 members. Crews are actively working to safely restore power as quickly as possible.

To monitor outages, visit https://outageview.chelco.com:8080

Address

655 U.S. Highway 331 North
Defuniak Springs, FL

Opening Hours

Monday 7:30am - 4pm
Tuesday 7:30am - 4pm
Wednesday 7:30am - 4pm
Thursday 7:30am - 4pm
Friday 7:30am - 4pm

Telephone

+18508922111

Website

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