The lingering effects of Irene could last for days in Connecticut as the state restores power, cell service and more.
Hundreds of thousands of people are still out of power and Gov. Dannel Malloy said on Monday that it will take a long time to fully restore. Some people will have no power for a week or more, he said.
We’ve never has as many people out of power as we’ve had with this storm, Malloy said.
As a precaution, Malloy said residents should not eat food that has been in a fridge without power for more than four hours. If food has been in contact with flood water, do not consume it, Malloy said.
Fifteen to 20 percent of supermarkets have no power, Malloy said. His administration is reviewing where they are. If a "disproportionate number" of urban area residents, who tend to be less mobile, are being affected, the state will make restoring service in those supermarkets and distribution of generators to those markets a priority, Malloy said.
He said cell service could degrade over time and asked residents to keep cell phone service to a minimum. Cell service will likely fade as 300 cell towers are fading. This will allow people who have emergencies to reach out for help.
Cable and Internet will not be quickly restored either, Malloy said.
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Malloy is also asking residents to minimize driving because the amount of gas being delivered to gas stations is at reduced levels.
"Until we get all of our oil and gas delivery facilities back up and running, gasoline stations are being limited to deliveries of about 3,000 gallons," Malloy said. There are also several stations without power.
State parks and beaches remain closed on Monday to assess damage and they will open on a case-by-case basis.
One of the bright points is that there are no problems with the drinking water, Malloy said.
