Power restored in Gary, Indiana, but recovery from devastating Aug. 11 storm still underway

The power is back on in Northwest Indiana, but life is far from normal in Gary following this month's severe storms.

Cleanup was still underway on Thursday from 99 mph winds on Aug. 11 that left some people in the dark for nearly two full weeks.

Gary Mayor Eddie Melton said he's making sure the next time such powerful winds come through, they're ready. There's also the matter of holding NIPSCO – his former employer – accountable for how long power outages lasted after the storm.

"It's still early right now. We're in recovery phase," he said.

It's been two weeks and two days since the damaging storms for a city that was left in the dark for too long. For some homes and businesses, it took two weeks for NIPSCO to restore power.

"We thought we were forgotten about, and it's taken them so long to help us," Gary resident Willette Wright said earlier this week.

"Every day it gets more difficult when you go without power," Gary resident Sonji Williams said.

Insult was added to injury in the early days of the blackout, when NIPSCO omitted Gary from their timelines on when power would come back.

"Why wasn't Gary listed in the restoration timeframe, which made myself and the citizens feel we were overlooked?" Melton said.

NIPSCO might have overlooked them, but some of those citizens are forming a class action group to sue the company.

The mayor hasn't decided whether the city will also sue NIPSCO over the extended power outages.

"I don't want to commit to anything at this point in time until I see all options before me," Melton said.

Melton, who worked for NIPSCO for 15 years in government affairs, community relations, and employee engagement before he was elected a state lawmaker and later mayor, said that experience impacted how he handled the two-week wait for all of Gary to get power back after the storm.

"I still work closely with those in operations, so I understand the process when it comes to operations when it comes down to recovery," he said.

How does he view allegations that part of the elongated blackout has to do with his former employer disinvesting in the city that's 76% Black and one-third in poverty?

"That's part of that review process, and I know the governor has issued a request for an investigation, and in that investigation, I'm hoping that they're going to look at the maintenance schedule, the maintenance of equipment, the age of equipment," the mayor said.

Melton has received largely favorable marks from Gary residents who have spoken to CBS News Chicago since the storm.

He's also a Democratic mayor working closely with Indiana's Republican senators and governor and had what he framed as productive talks with President Trump, yielding quick approval of disaster resources.

Chris Tye's full interview with Melton airs Sunday morning at 7:40 a.m. on CBS News Chicago on "The Angle."