GRAND RAPIDS (WKZO-AM) — Consumers Energy says power should be restored by midnight to nearly all of its 17,000 west Michigan customers affected by Monday’s ice storm.
Spokesperson Roger Morgenstern said restoration could continue into the middle of Wednesday for harder-hit areas, but he also said things are returning to normal.
“That is our belief and the weather conditions will be helping us, with the temperatures rising and not a lot of precipitation expected,” Morgenstern said.
He also said the utility was expecting Monday’s storm to be much worse.
“There was more sleet than freezing rain, which is good news for trees and power lines,” Morgenstern said. “Sleet makes driving messy, but it doesn’t stick to trees and power lines.”
As many as 1,700 people have been working to turn the lights back on since Christmas Eve. On that day, a wind storm knocked out electricity to 183,000 customers throughout the state.
– Anthony Pollreisz
