GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) – Efforts continue to restore power in Northeast Wisconsin following Sunday’s storms.
As of 4 pm Monday, Wisconsin Public Service Spokesman Matt Cullen says crews had restored power to more than 72,000 people, with roughly 19,300 customers still in the dark.
“And the majority of those outages are in our northern portions of our service area. Some of the communities in the area affected include the Minocqua area (2,800 customers), the Marinette/Menominee, Michigan areas (4,700), the Wabeno area (4,500), the Wausaukee area (3,400), and the Rhinelander area (1,500).”
Cullen explains crew’s efforts.
“They’ve been working around the clock ever since the storms started. They’re facing some pretty extensive damage right now including: numerous broken power poles, downed trees, and downed wires.”
Cullen urges people to be cautious around those items.
“Stay at least 25 feet away from any downed power line, and they need to assume that those downed lines are energized.”
Cullen says people should immediately notify both WPS and local police.
He looks at the timeline going forward.
“We expect that the majority of our customers will have power restored by late Tuesday.”
Cullen reminds people who operate generators to do it outdoors and away from one’s home or other structures.
He says those without power should contact their local emergency management department to ask about cooling centers and other resources available.
