HOLLAND, MI (WHTC-AM/FM) – More than 118,000 Consumers Energy customers lost power since high winds and freezing rain, sleet and snow arrived Saturday.
As of Sunday afternoon, the company reported that power had been restored to 82,000 customers.
Company officials, in a statement emailed to media Sunday afternoon, estimated that all customers would see power restored by 11:00 p.m. Monday.
“Our workforce was in place and prepared ahead of the first wave of these storms, and are now responding around the clock with all hands on deck working to restore our customers’ power,” said Guy Packard, Consumers Energy’s vice president of energy operations. “With rough weather arriving in two waves, we appreciate the patience of our customers while we work to quickly and safely restore their electric service.”
More than 1,500 Consumers’ lineworkers, damage assessors, wire guards and customer service representatives have worked through the weekend, according to the company’s statement. Utility crews from West Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky, Illinois and Indiana have arrived to help, according to Consumers’ statement.
Customers can sign up to get outage alerts and restoration times sent to a phone, email or text message, Text ‘REG’ to 232273 or visit www.ConsumersEnergy.com/alerts. Customers can report an outage, check the status of an outage and get useful tips what to do before, during and after a storm by visiting www.ConsumersEnergy.com/OutageCenter.
Safety tips offered by Consumers Energy include:
- Staying at least 25 feet away from downed power lines and to call 911 and Consumers Energy at 800-477-5050.
- Be alert to crews working along roads. Drivers should slow down or stop and wait for oncoming traffic to clear so they safely can go past workers on roadsides.
- Being mindful that operating a generator may produce hazardous levels of carbon monoxide, an odorless, colorless and deadly gas. Never use a generator in an attached garage, basement or near any air intakes, and never fuel a generator when it is running.
