CL&P says it has almost completed its damage assessments and has made substantial progress in clearing roads, which allows it to transition fully into "restoration mode" on Thursday.
William Quinlan, a utility vice president, said at a 4 p.m. briefing Wednesday that by Thursday morning he would have an estimate for when the vast majority of customers would get their power back.
"We continue to make excellent progress," Quinlan said, adding that the priority will be restoring critical facilities such as hospitals, police stations, fire stations and water treatment plants. About 500 such facilities still don't have power, he said.
In addition, Quinlan said, the company has firm commitments from 300 additional line workers and 250 additional tree workers and hopes to put them in the field tomorrow. That would bring the total number of out-of-state line workers — in addition to the 400 employed by CL&P — to 1380. The total number of called-in tree workers — in addition to about 300 in-state who work regularly with CL&P — would go up to 888, he said.
Quinlan said the company had shifted its strategy from last year, when 800,000 customers lost power after a rare October snowstorm. It now considers clearing downed wires the highest priority.
"The reason we're focused on downed wires," he said, "is that they present a public health and safety risk."
Quinlan said there were a "substantial number of resources" in both the southwestern and southeastern corners of the state, where the most residents have lost power.
About 350,000 customers have had power restored since the storm began, but 320,000 customers were still in the dark on Wednesday afternoon.
CL&P = Connecticut Lazy and Pathetic
Being without power for so long is frustrating and exhausting, but does not give anyone reason to bully others. I wish you would take some time to speak to, and thank, the "buffoons" who have left their families and homes to help YOU. As AD put it above, many of them (thought not all) have travelled far to help us and have been working long hours doing a very physically demanding job. If you do not admit to rewarding yourself with a break and a cup of coffee on a tiring work day then you are a liar. My father works for the utility and has been on mandatory 12+ hour shifts; leaving my mother home alone to deal with kids, storm damage and no electricity. I do believe that your not having power still entitles utilities workers to rest and meals. I for one would want that for someone dealing with high voltages and heights in close proximity to my property. And regardless of where their staging areas are, there is a reason that they restore certain areas before others. I hope that your power and normal routine are soon restored. In the interim, take some time to reflect and to utilize the services that our community has provided for us in this trying time.