Tropical Storm Isaias: 7,000 Still In The Dark In Norwalk

NORWALK, CT — Tropical Storm Isaias roared through Connecticut on Tuesday, leaving a trail of destruction and power outages throughout Norwalk and various parts of the state. As a result, Everource officials have been left scrambling for solutions.

As of Friday evening, three days after the storm, more than 7,000 Eversource utility customers remained without power in Norwalk, or just over 22 percent of the customers in the city.

"Power is slowly being restored around Norwalk as we move into the weekend. While we have seen some progress in the past 24 hours, it is far from enough," said Norwalk Mayor Harry Rilling late Friday afternoon. "I have been in constant contact with Eversource to demand swifter response to the incredible number of power outages we are experiencing. Their lack of preparation and response is unconscionable. I took Congressman [Jim] Himes on tour of storm damage this morning. We are both committed to doing all that we can to ensure power is restored as quickly as possible."

At Gov. Ned Lamont's urging, President Donald Trump on Friday declared an emergency in Connecticut.

Earlier on Friday, Michelle DeLuca, Norwalk's deputy director of Emergency Management, issued this update:

Eversource provided 2 crews last night to work with DPW. In total, we had 202 reported incidents. 138 have been cleared. There are 36 streets that have trees and wires which require Eversource to de-energize and clear and 28 streets are open but still have debris that DPW will clear.

• DPW will schedule a special yard debris pickup in the next week or two. More information will be posted online or residents can contact Customer service at 203-854-3200.
• There are 9,258 reported power outages. TTD and SNEW are restored. The Library has set up an outdoor charging area. We can also direct residents to the SONO collection for charging.
• Residents who lost food as result of the storm and power outage, should check their homeowner or renters insurance policies. Many will cover lost food as a result of power outages.
• For food safety tips following a power outage visit: https://www.cdc.gov/foodsafety/food-safety-during-a-power-outage.html
• The City continues to post updates on its website: www.norwalkct.org

Some traffic lights still were not working in Norwalk on Friday, and the constant hum of generators continued to shatter the usual calm of some neighborhoods in the city.

Norwalk Emergency Management officials issued guidance on the use of generators to help keep residents safe while power restoration continues.

Late Thursday night, Eversource — which the state is investigating due to its poor response to the storm — said it expects to have power restored to virtually all of its customers by late Tuesday night.

"Eversource estimates it will make significant progress by the end of the weekend and have its restoration substantially complete by Tuesday, August 11th at 11:59 p.m., with many customers restored before that time," officials wrote. "Substantially complete means fewer than one percent of customers are still without power."

Additional crews were expected to arrive to help out in Connecticut on Friday, apparently because they were not requested earlier by Eversource officials.

Internet service was down for large portions of Fairfield County in the days following the storm, but much of it was back in service by Friday, according to Altice. Many customers of Frontier Communications, however, still did not have internet service on Friday.