Crime & Safety

UPDATE Hurricane Sandy: Outages Could Last Days

Power outages are widespread east Ohio due to strong winds from Hurricane Sandy.

Originally published Oct. 29. Updated at 2 p.m. Oct. 30 to reflect the latest power outages and repair estimates from FirstEnergy.

Most of the more than 3,000 customers who have lost power in Beachwood have been restored as of Wednesday morning, according to FirstEnergy, but remaining outages could last to the end of the week.

After more than half of Beachwood lost power Tuesday night, all but 69 have been restored.

Find out what's happening in Beachwoodwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Spokesperson Mark Durbin said Tuesday that most customers should have power again by this weekend, though some, especially on the West side, may take longer.

Beachwood Patch user Sara Stein Tweeted Tuesday night that she saw outages on Hendon Road and Buckhurst and Deborah drives.

Find out what's happening in Beachwoodwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Where are you seeing outages? Tell us in the comments.

Durbin said that these outages are generally due to high winds brought on by Hurricane Sandy, but added that crews are in a tough spot when it comes to repairs.

"We are currently in a situation where, until the wind stops blowing, we’re not going to have a good handle on restoration time," he said. "If crews can safely make a repair we will do that, but we’re not esending crews up in bucket in 60-mile-per-hour winds."

Some repairs can be done from the ground, he stressed.

He added that if you have an outage, it's very important to report it. Customers should call 888-544-4877 if you have an outage — even if you think someone else will call — to help the company accurately track and respond to outages in the area.

The National Weather Service has issued a high wind warning for all of Northeast Ohio effective until 4 p.m. Tuesday.

These winds will be sustained at 30 to 40 miles per hour with gusts of up to 65 miles per hour, the NWS predicts.

Residents can check current outages on FirstEnergy's website.

Crews have been sent from Ohio to the East Coast, where damage is expected to be more severe and widespread, Durbin said, but crews in Northeast Ohio are fully equipped to respond the storm.

More coverage: Hurricane Sandy in Northeast Ohio

“We would not have sent those crews if we didn’t think we had adequate staffing here to deal with outages,” Durbin added.

He said Tuesday that the company has adequate resources to handle the outages, though the company is seeking more, with crews from as far as Idaho and Montana coming in to help.

This message was also included on the company's website:

The Illuminating Company is experiencing widespread power outages due to severe weather in our service area. Depending on the severity of the storm's impact on the electrical system, power outages could last up to seven to 10 days. Crews are assessing the situation and will begin service restoration work as soon as it's safe to do so ...  If you are experiencing a life-threatening emergency, hang-up now and call 9-1-1. Remember to treat all downed wires as live and dangerous. Customers should immediately report downed wires to the Illuminating Company or local police or fire department.


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