Thousands Remain Without Power, Schools Closed After Strong Winds
DETROIT (WWJ) - Power has been restored to more than half of the 180,000 homes and businesses that lost power Monday following strong winds gusts that swept through southeast Michigan, knocking down trees and power lines.
As of early Tuesday morning, DTE Energy said approximately 78,000 power outages remain. A majority of those outages are in Wayne County, 38,000, and Oakland County, 15,000. The power outages have forces some area schools to close for the day.
"Yesterday, we had wind gusts up to 60 miles per hour so it was a difficult time for our crews, but they're well-trained and they're working hard to get the job done," said DTE spokesperson Vanessa Waters.
Crews hope to get a vast majority of customers who lost power restored by Wednesday.
[Check the DTE outage map, HERE]
"Our crews are working long hours around the clock because they definitely want to make sure that our customers are restored as quickly as possible, especially this holiday week," Waters said.
DTE received more than 1,000 reports of downed power lines. Residents should stay at least 20 feet away of all power lines and anything they're in contact with, and consider them live. Report a downed line by calling DTE Energy at 1-800-477-4747.
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