National Grid Restores Power to Over 100,000 Customers on Day Two of Snowtober

*The following was submitted to Foxborough Patch.

On day two following the severe October snowstorm that dumped several inches of wet snow in Massachusetts resulting in fallen trees and downed lines, National Grid has restored power to over 100,000 customers. The company continues its aggressive response to restore power as efficiently and safely as possible for residential and business customers in Massachusetts.

Hundreds of crews are repairing damage from the storm, mainly in Central and Western Massachusetts, the Merrimack Valley and the greater Franklin/Wrentham area.  Contractor crews from as far away as North Carolina, Michigan and Ohio began aiding in the response and more came from Kansas, Virginia, Kentucky and Texas today.

“We realize the major inconvenience it is for people to be without power and want our customers to know we are doing everything we can to restore power as quickly as possible,” said Marcy Reed, president, National Grid Massachusetts.  “However, even with all the resources that we are deploying to restore power, it takes time to repair damage as extensive as what we incurred this weekend.”  Reed continued, “Customers are having power restored each hour.  We expect to have power back to the vast majority of our customers by Thursday evening.  The exceptions will be customers located in isolated pockets that present special circumstances or those who need to make repairs to their homes before we can restore service.”

A list of estimated restoration times for all affected communities follows this document.  It is important to note that these times represent our expectation of when the restoration in a specific community will be completed.  In the meantime, customers will be restored on an ongoing basis around the clock.

Urging continued safety particularly on Halloween when pedestrians will be out in the evening in several communities, National Grid reminds customers that crews will still be out in full force on restoration efforts and caution should be exercised on roadways and sidewalks.  Residents should consider all downed wires to be energized and dangerous, including telephone, fiber optic and cable TV wires since they may be in contact with energized electric wires that are not within your view.  If businesses or individuals are using generators, they need to be kept outdoors and main breakers turned off.