Northwest Indiana residents continue suffering after back-to-back storms devastated the state earlier this month.
Winds of nearly 100 mph and torrential downpours knocked trees into people’s homes and driveways and flooded basements and roads. Seven people died across Indiana. The storms caused widespread power outages in much of the state.
As of Tuesday night, 100 of the 374,500 NIPSCO customers who lost power Aug. 11 were without service. That number was down from more than 9,300 customers who didn’t have power on Monday.
Prior to the service restorations Tuesday, Gary — one of Indiana’s hardest-hit cities — had the most customers in the state without power, according to the utility company.
Here’s what to know about what happened in Northwest Indiana and the relief efforts underway.
When will Northwest Indiana cities get their power back?
NIPSCO reported that more than 60% of its customers — roughly 370,000 — lost power during the Aug. 11 storm and subsequent days of severe weather.
Gary and Portage residents were expected to have to wait until Tuesday for their power to return — two weeks after the Aug. 11 storm. Here’s the full list of towns still waiting on power.
Why is it taking so long?
Part of why it’s taking longer to restore power is the city suffered the most “extensive and complex damage” from the storm, mainly because of the 99 mph winds that tore through Northwest Indiana and knocked down several large trees, a NIPSCO executive has said.
A week after the storms, residents showed the Sun-Times the extent of the damage. The worst was caused by mature large trees falling on their properties.
Crews of linemen are repairing downed power lines and rebuilding destroyed electrical systems. That includes 335 damaged poles that need to be repaired or replaced and 27 outages at substations that need to be fixed before power can be restored.
Why did ComEd restore power faster for the south suburbs?
The same storm system that hit Indiana also caused seven tornadoes in Chicago’s south suburbs. Soon after the storm, ComEd was able to restore power for the vast majority of its customers.
Melody Birmingham, the group utilities president at NiSource, NIPSCO’s parent company, tried to explain Wednesday why it’s taken the utility longer to restore power compared to ComEd. ComEd has 4 million customers, compared to NIPSCO’s 500,000. That means the utility has a much larger staff and is better equipped to respond to outages faster.
Are schools still closed?
The damage caused by the storms caused many school districts to close schools until power is restored and debris is cleared.
Gary’s schools have been closed all week. As of Thursday, Gary Community School Corporation was still waiting for power to return to all of the city’s schools. The school district, which is posting regular updates on its website, has not said whether schools will reopen next week.
In a note posted to the School City of Hobart’s website, Supt. Peggy Buffington said she anticipates schools opening Monday.
How have businesses been affected?
Many restaurants, gas stations, grocery stores, banks and small businesses across Northwest Indiana were also still without power. Many businesses remain closed, while others are able to partially operate.
Gary Chamber of Commerce President Charles Hughes said he does not have a timeline for when businesses will have power restored because NIPSCO is prioritizing hospitals and homes.
What resources are available?
Crews from FEMA and the Indiana Department of Homeland Security are assessing the damage across the state.
Indiana Gov. Mike Braun has activated the state’s disaster relief fund. People can apply online for relief funds. Immediate emergency grants are capped at $5,000.
Several community groups are also providing resources and shelter. The YWCA, 150 W. 15th Ave., is offering round-the-clock shelter, warm meals and charging stations. The Monroe Center, 4101 Washington St., is offering emergency shelter to residents whose homes were affected. Family Life Community Center, 565 Massachusetts St., is distributing hot meals and groceries.
Capital B Gary has compiled this list of resources for those in need of help, including where to get hot meals, power for their devices and emergency shelter.