As storms moved across Michigan Tuesday night, the West Michigan region experienced downed power lines due to high winds and heavy rain. Consumers Energy says over 70,000 customers lost power.
“Mother Nature once again caused severe damage across our service territory,” said Guy Packard, Consumers Energy’s vice president for electric operations. “We are mobilizing crews and stationing them in our hardest hit areas to begin damage assessment and restoration work once the storms die down.”
The Consumers Energy outage map can be used to report outages and see the estimated time of restoration. According to the map, widespread outages were mostly seen in Mecosta, Newaygo, Montcalm, Clare and Ionia counties.
When dealing with downed power lines, Packard encourages people to stay at least 25 feet away and supervise pets and children. Downed lines can be reported by calling 911 or Consumers Energy at 800-477-5050.
Consumers Energy officials also released safety tips and guidelines for addressing storm damage:
- 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.
- Call 211 if you are looking for help connecting to resources that offer assistance in your community. 211 is a free statewide service.
- A portable generator should be placed at least 25 feet away from any doors, windows or fresh air intakes. Never operate a generator inside your home, garage, basement or enclosed area. Doing so could cause a generator to produce hazardous levels of carbon monoxide, an odorless, colorless and deadly gas. Proper ventilation is critical.
- Consumers Energy will trim or remove trees interfering with electric restoration activities. Once safe to do so, clean-up of debris from tree trimming or removal during a storm emergency is the responsibility of individual property owners.
- In some cases, the mast which holds the electric service wires to a customer’s home or business may have been damaged or torn away. Crews will reconnect the wires to a home, but only a licensed electrician can repair or replace a mast or a cable.
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