DTE Working To Restore Power To Remaining 2,500 Customers Affected By Wind Storm
DETROIT (WWJ) - Power has now been restored to all but under one percent of the hundreds of thousands of DTE Energy customers who lost service last week.
As of 9 p.m. Tuesday, 2,500 customers affected by last Wednesday's windstorm remain without power. DTE says snow and icy road conditions coupled with complicated and time-consuming repairs impeded restoration efforts early in the week.
Some of the outages are more complex or are in hard-to-reach areas adding to the time and manpower necessary, according to DTE.
While there are undoubtedly unhappy and inconvenienced customers many took to social media to extended their appreciation for those working to restore their power in less than favorable winter weather conditions.
While there are undoubtedly unhappy and inconvenienced customers -- many took to social media to extended their appreciation for those working to restore their power in less than favorable winter weather conditions.
Tuesday evening DTE Energy released a statement which stated they continue to prioritize the remaining 2,500 customers who have been without power since Wednesday.
Noting that their biggest challenge continues to be the number of jobs with extensive damage. DTE says they currently have over 3,000 crews working in the field, and due to the complexity and dispersed nature of the remaining outages, additional crews from other utilities continue to assist DTE.
Questions from DTE customers throughout the restoration process:
List of common concerns and DTE's responses.
DTE Energy shares the following safety tips for residents:
Never operate a generator inside your home or in other enclosed or partially-enclosed spaces, including garages.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission recommends generators be positioned at least 20 feet from doors, windows and vents to prevent carbon monoxide from entering the home.
· Customers should stay at least 20 feet away from all power lines and anything they may contact, and consider them live. Do not cross yellow caution tape, which indicates there is a downed power line in the area.
The weather continues to be cold. Here are some tips to protect your home:
Running water, even at a trickle, helps prevent pipes from freezing.
All fuel-burning equipment should be vented to the outside.
Keep garage doors closed if there are water supply lines in the garage.
Open kitchen and bathroom cabinet doors to allow warmer air to circulate around the plumbing. Be sure to move any harmful cleaners and household chemicals out of the reach of children.
To drain pipes, locate your home's main water shut-off valve. Turn to the off position. Turn on every water fixture in the house until the water stops running. Open all faucets and flush all toilets in the house, starting with the top floor and working your way down.
At the peak, 800,000 homes and businesses were in the dark, making for "the largest weather event in DTE Energy history." The high winds caused extensive tree damage, resulting in more than 9,000 reported downed power lines and hundreds of downed trees.
To report and outage or downed line to DTE, call 800-477-4747.
