As of Friday morning, 166,360 Connecticut Light & power customers do not have power and company officials are standing by projections that power will be restored to most customers on Monday or Tuesday.
“We understand that this is a challenging time for our customers, the fact that it’s difficult being without power, particularly as the temperatures start to drop,” Bill Quinlan, senior vice president of emergency preparedness for CL&P, said on Friday morning. “We are doing everything within our power to restore service just as soon as we possibly can.”
Quinlan said customers can look forward to more significant progress on Friday and the vast amount of resources are concentrating on the southeastern coast, from Branford to the Rhode Island border and southwestern Connecticut.
“We’re getting into those most heavily hit area right now with a substantial contingent of resources,” Quinlan said.
“I think the governor, and actually the president of the United States, recognizes that those areas are particularly hard hit,” he said.
On Thursday, CL&P had 1,080 external line workers. The number is up to 1,500 on Friday and should be up to around 2,100 external line workers on Saturday.
The group brought in includes the “full span” of Northeast Utilities, including management teams from Massachusetts and New Hampshire and 100 retirees working on restoration efforts.
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The utility companies said they are dealing with thousands of downed trees, many broken poles and large spans of downed wires, according to Quinlan.
Other possible resources include utility workers from California. Quinlan said CL&P is in discussions with FEMA and the trucks could be brought into Westover.
What Connecticut residents who have no power want to know is when they personally will get power back.
Later today, CL&P will provide “district” restoration estimates, according to Quinlan.
“We’re putting out these restoration projections so that our customers can make their decisions and plan their lives accordingly. We understand the importance of those being accurate. They are our best estimates, but as I’ve indicated consistently, they are not guarantees,” Quinlan said.
