The cleanup continues from storms that knocked out power to customers of Indiana Michigan Power this week. After more storms Saturday, I&M says Michigan customers still in the dark should have all their service restored by 11 p.m. Sunday. I&M tells us the following:
More than 1,300 utility professionals are working to restore power following a long-lasting storm that swept through east-central Indiana, southwest Michigan and the other areas that Indiana Michigan Power serves on Saturday.
As crews address individual outages, they have encountered heavy damage to electrical equipment caused by the storm’s wind and lightning. In many cases, trees and limbs must be cleared from the equipment before a line can be placed back into service. So far in the restoration, crews have identified more than 220 spans of downed wire and more than 120 broken or damaged poles.
Marshalling available resources, I&M assembled a large contingent of 900 mutual assistance personnel and contractors to join 450 I&M employees working on restoration. Crews are working 16-hour shifts to complete the restoration of all customers.
A new storm overnight Saturday caused some additional outages in southwest Michigan that are reflected in the outage counts.
More storms are possible today, which could impede the safe restoration of power, affect estimated times of restoration and cause additional outages.
OUTAGE COUNTS
As of 11 a.m. about 12,000 customers were without service. Approximate outage counts for the following areas were:
Indiana: 11,000
Marion area: 7,200
Muncie area: 2,700
South Bend area: 475
Elkhart area: 425
Winchester area: 200
Fort Wayne area: Less than 50
Michigan: 1,200
Benton Harbor area: 600
Buchanan area: 600
ESTIMATED TIMES OF RESTORATION
Estimated times of restoration (ETRs) are when I&M expects to have at least 90% of customers restored. Most will be restored sooner. The times for specific areas will be updated, and customers are encouraged to use mobile alerts or check I&M’s outage map for updated ETRs.
East Central Indiana (includes Muncie, Marion, Winchester areas): 11 p.m. tonight
South Bend area: 11 p.m. tonight
OUTAGE UPDATE
7-24-2022 | 11 a.m.
Elkhart area: 7 p.m. tonight
Benton Harbor area: 11 p.m. tonight (Most customers affected by the Saturday morning storm have been restored; most remaining outages are due to Saturday night’s storm)
Buchanan area: 11 p.m. tonight
HELP WITH RESTORATION
To help with prompt restoration, I&M asks our customers and the public to:
Stay safe by staying away from downed wires and flooded areas.
Please don’t approach our crews or trucks. Our crews appreciate the kind words of thanks and understand why customers have questions, but their work is highly dangerous, and asking questions can slow down restoration work.
When driving, please move over for utility trucks and first responders. Give us enough room to work.
Of you clean up debris, keep piles away from utility poles and other electrical equipment.
