Crews Working To Restore Power To Thousands Still In Dark After Storm
DENVER (CBS4)- There are still tens of thousands of people still without power more than 24 hours after it stopped snowing.
Xcel Energy reports 24,375 customers out of service at about 9 p.m. Thursday.
Here is a breakdown of power outages by region Thursday:
- 14,600 Denver/Boulder
- 2,900 Fort Collins
- 7,700 Greeley
- 700 Longmont
- 1,100 Poudre Valley Rural Electric Association
- 90 Loveland
Greeley residents still without power are asked to call 800-895-1999. Xcel Energy wants to make sure they have an accurate count in Greeley and that they get a crew to restore power to everyone still without service.
Crews with Poudre Valley REA will continue to work throughout the night and tomorrow until all power is restored. Members are urged to use the Emergency Outage Contact Number 866-260-4024 to report problems.
United Power had restored power to all customers by 4:15 p.m. Thursday. Three tree trimming crews continued to look for problems.
Because temperatures are expected to dip below freezing Thursday night, three shelters in Northern Colorado will remain open to those still without power.
The Red Cross is operating shelters at the following locations:
- Thompson Valley High School, 1669 Eagle Drive, Loveland
- Island Grove Exhibition Hall, 525 N. 15th Avenue, Greeley
- Windsor Community Recreation Center, 250 N. 11th Street, Windsor (operated by Town of Windsor and supported by DaySpring Christian Church).
Additional information is available at the Red Cross (800) 824-6615.
Residents are struggling to continue daily routines without power.
"It's hard to do anything at home, it slows everything down," said Denver resident James Tomasi.
Roommates Tomasi and Mark Morin said they've seen bigger storms, but don't recall a worse aftermath.
"Especially since this is a main intersection right off of 6th and Colorado, you'd think it would be one of the main spots to fix," said Morin.
Xcel crews have been working to restore power. It's been difficult because the storm made localized problems. Instead of one outage impacting an area, thousands of small blackouts stretched across the Front Range, each requiring their own attention.
"We've got tree groups going out, cutting those branches, getting them out of the way so our repair crew can get those lines up," said Xcel Energy spokesman Gabriel Romero.
