45,000 still without power following Friday's winter storm
Residents across southeast Michigan faced hazardous road conditions and widespread power outages amidst a severe winter storm Friday. The storm brought thundersnow and snowfall more than 10 inches in some parts of the region, according to the National Weather Service.
45,000 without power
DTE reported 45,098 customers without power and more than 3,600 workers in the field, as of 4:40 p.m. Sunday. This is down from more than 150,000 customers without power on Saturday.
Consumers Energy reported 73 customers without power and 34 crews in the field at 4:40 p.m. Sunday. The company reported over 4,500 customers without power on Saturday.
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Royal Oak outage frustrations
Jane McNamara, a resident and business owner in Royal Oak, experienced ongoing power outages at her home and Jazzercise studio in the city this weekend.
"Of course I'm extremely frustrated, I know I'm not the only one and I just don't understand why Royal Oak is so bad," McNamara said.
McNamara said she hasn't found DTE's Outage Map to be accurate, so she checked her business' power status by going in person periodically.
Her Jazzercise studio lost power Friday night, regained it Saturday and lost power again Saturday night. This caused some confusion among customers, as she initially communicated to them that she would reopen Sunday, before having to announce she would remain closed when the power went back off.
"It is the time of year where everybody's coming to classes, our weekends our typically jammed and I have no power and there's no way I can hold classes," she said.
McNamara also said the outage map had inaccurate information about her home's power status, stating that her home power was restored when it remained out on Sunday.
She would like to see DTE take steps to improve its restoration efforts and community engagement moving forward.
"You have a frustrated community and you need to communicate better and resolve the problem faster," McNamara said.
Monday weather forecast
Some precipitation conditions may return on Monday, according to the NWS. Monday is predicted to be a high of 43 degrees with a 40% chance of precipitation, a potential for rain and snow. There will be a chance of rain and snow before 10 a.m., then a chance of rain after 10 a.m.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: 45,000 still without power following Friday's winter storm
