WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:
- I&M crews have been making steady progress over the course of the day and most of the customers who were impacted by Thursday’s storms and are able to receive power have been restored.
- This includes 100% of affected customers in Michigan.
- We know that the remaining 5,200 customers still without power depend on us to safely restore their service. I&M expects them to be restored by tomorrow as our crews continue their work overnight.
- With additional storms expected, be aware that trees and branches weakened in the earlier storm may come down more easily, even in conditions that might not normally cause damage. This can lead to new outages or slow restoration in some areas.
- Stay alert for signs like shifting limbs or mounded soil at the base of trees which could indicate root damage, and keep a safe distance, especially if winds pick up.
SITUATION:
As of 8:00 p.m. approximately 5,200 customers are without power, meaning most of customers impacted by Thursday’s storms have been restored. I&M expects all customers who are able to receive power will be restored by tomorrow.
Approximately 500 restoration experts will be working through the night, focusing on outages in Elkhart and surrounding areas.
We understand how difficult it has been to not have power under the weather conditions of the past few days and we appreciate everyone’s patience through the restoration efforts. Every customer matters and every outage will be addressed by our teams.
We are aware that some customers received inaccurate text alerts that power has been restored. We apologize for the inconvenience. It is happening because each customer is on a circuit. If we restore a portion of a circuit, our system is sending an alert to all customers on that circuit, even if the part that controls power to their location has not yet been repaired. We are working with our information systems to fix the problem moving forward.
CAN YOU RECEIVE POWER?
Due to the widespread damage from this storm, in some cases damage may affect the equipment connected directly to your home or business. If that’s the case, a licensed electrician may need to make repairs before we can safely restore service. Checking for any visible damage and contacting an electrician, if needed, can help those repairs get completed sooner so we can restore your power.
If our crews see damage that prevents restoration, we will contact you directly and/or leave a door hanger with next steps. You can learn more about the process here.