Nipsco works to restore power

MERRILLVILLE, Ind. (WANE) - As a result of Friday morning's storm, which caused widespread power outages across northern Indiana and other parts of the Midwest, NIPSCO crews and contractors are working around the clock to restore power.

"After all assessments were completed, nearly 100,000 customers lost power due to this storm and we have been able to restore service to over 85,000 of them at this point," said Colleen Reilly, director of communications and pubic affairs for NIPSCO. "We sincerely thank our customers for their patience and want them to know we are doing everything we can to restore their power as quickly and safely as possible."

An additional 90 contracting crews have been brought to the service territory on Saturday to help assist with restoration and all available NIPSCO crews and contractors are working to restore power to as many customers as possible before more precipitation and high winds come into the area.

While great strides have been made in restoring power to nearly 90 percent of customers who were affected, challenges in restoration efforts may lie ahead. Temperatures have remained cold, leaving electric lines and trees coated with ice. With additional inclement weather forecasted for the area, including high winds, restoration efforts could be negatively impacted and new outages could occur.

With the likelihood of high winds and more precipitation coming into the service territory Saturday and Sunday, NIPSCO encourages customers without power to establish a backup plan, as outages could last through the weekend and into next week.