Duke Energy and the organizers of a planned "Pitchfork Protest" at the utility's Florida headquarters Wednesday have hired off-duty police officers to oversee safety.
The Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, a Tennessee-based nonprofit environmental organization, hopes to bring hundreds to protest Duke's treatment of its customers in recent years. Protesters plan to wield pitchforks and torches like it's 1785, the Tampa Bay Times said.
According to the Times, Duke has hired one off-duty St. Petersburg police officer and the Southern Alliance has hired two.
The protest is among the outcry against Duke and its practices, including failed nuclear projects that are costing customers billions, meter and billing strategies that pushed some customers into higher rate tiers and demands for large deposits on commercial accounts.
Protest organizer Susan Glickman told the Times Southern Alliance will offer $3.45 to the first 500 protesters who bring a copy of their electric bills. That's the amount the average Duke customer pays each month for the canceled Levy County nuclear project.
Protesters can opt for a box lunch instead of the cash because, she told the Times, "it shouldn't be just the utilities getting a free lunch."
The event set set for noon at Williams Park, 330 Second Ave. N, St. Petersburg, across from the Duke Energy Florida headquarters at the corner of Third Street and First Ave. N.