12/23/13 - Utility crews are preparing to work through the night to restore power to homes and businesses, both locally and across Michigan, in hopes of getting the lights back on for many before Christmas. Crews spent a busy day all over mid-Michigan following this weekendâs ice storm and utilities say they are starting to see a decrease in the number of customers without power. In its latest update, DTE says approximately 78,000 customers of its customers have no power â 3,000 in Livingston County. Thatâs down from a peak of 13,500 local outages on Sunday and DTE hopes to have power restored to most by Tuesday night. The news is not so good for local customers of Consumers Energy, which says nearly 3,670 of its customers in Livingston County remained without power. Most are in Tyrone and Cohoctah Townships and utility officials say it may be as late as Saturday before they can be fully restored to power. Ice storms differ from others in that damage from ice often continues for several days. Officials with both utilities warn that the total number of customers affected may continue to rise as ice continues to weigh down tree branches, causing them to snap and take down power lines. The utilities also caution customers to accurately report outages and/or downed power lines, which is crucial for crews to respond with the correct resources, adding that incorrect reporting slows the restoration process. The latest information released by both DTE Energy and Consumers Energy can be found below. (JM)
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