Contracted crews wait for orders in Griffith as NIPSCO faces mounting criticism over power outage response
Questions are mounting over how NIPSCO has managed outside crews brought in to help restore power to Northwest Indiana communities that have now gone nearly two weeks without electricity.
CBS News Chicago cameras caught contracted linemen sitting unassigned in a church parking lot in Griffith for hours, unable to work until they received direction from NIPSCO. When asked why, NIPSCO did not answer the specific questions — only saying crews are working around the clock.
Griffith Police Chief Al Tharp said the delay was not the workers' fault.
"We've had multiple linemen standing around at this location all morning that don't have work orders from NIPSCO," Tharp said. "It's not the workers' fault. It's the organizational leadership's fault that there's no clear-cut plan or direction giving our citizens power back."
Outside contractors have been brought in from Florida and Kentucky, similar to crews spotted working in Gary and Munster in recent days. Indiana Department of Corrections inmates have also been deployed to help remove debris.
Despite the outside help, progress has been slow. Live wires remain exposed and debris continues to litter the ground across the area — an issue previously documented in other communities as residents wait for utility crews to clear hazards before neighborhood power can be restored.
Rick Ryfa, town council president of Griffith, said frustration has reached a breaking point.
"Everyone's reaching a boiling point and the biggest finger to point at is NIPSCO because it's a shame they've just mismanaged this project," Ryfa said.
Griffith officials took matters into their own hands, conducting damage assessments themselves rather than waiting on NIPSCO to do so.
"Apparently wasn't getting done otherwise," Ryfa said. "Work's not getting done. People aren't getting connected so we decided to do the assessment ourselves."
Munster 5th Ward Town Councilor Jonathan Petersen traveled to Griffith to gather information directly, saying his own community is still waiting on answers and resources.
"That's part of the reason why I'm in Griffith — I have to go in and get information," Petersen said.
Petersen said Munster is also hoping to bring Indiana Department of Corrections crews into the community to help clear tree limbs and trunks from alleyways while residents wait for NIPSCO to restore service.
Residents are also raising concerns about cost — specifically, whether the expense of contracted outside crews could ultimately drive up their utility rates. That question comes as a class-action lawsuit filed this week accuses NIPSCO of neglecting vegetation management despite charging the highest electric rates of any utility in the state.
