MICHIGAN, USA — More than 70,000 Consumers Energy customers woke up without power Saturday morning in the wake of a major winter storm bringing strong winds and lots of snow to the region.
While the storm system is transitioning to lake-effect snow Saturday morning, a winter storm warning remains in effect for West Michigan until 7 p.m., and the warning could likely be extended.
Widespread heavy snow mixed with strong winds is a dangerous cocktail for power lines.
Consumers Energy has 400 crews, including additional help from nine states and contractors, who are prepared to tackle the outages this weekend.
Trucks and essential materials are prepared and staged to support restoration efforts in key areas.
Kent County has more than 6,000 customers affected, while Ottawa County shows nearly 3,500 customers are in the dark. Kalamazoo County is reporting 4,300 customers impacted, while on the lakeshore in Muskegon County, there are about 1,000 customers affected as of 8 a.m. Saturday.
You can see the latest outage map and report your own outage here.
In case of an outage:
- Charge all electronic devices. It’s advised to have an emergency battery or charging station available for use during an outage.
- Have an emergency kit that includes flashlights and extra batteries, water, canned food and blankets. Be prepared with enough medication, baby supplies and pet food if applicable. A battery-operated radio is also a good idea.
- Unplug sensitive electronics like TVs, computers and printers. Turn power strips off.
- Consumers Energy urges the public to keep important safety tips in mind:
- Stay at least 25 feet away from downed power lines, and to report unguarded downed lines by calling 9-1-1 and Consumers Energy at 800-477-5050.
- Never use a generator in an attached garage, basement, enclosed patio or near any air intakes. Doing so could cause a generator to produce hazardous levels of carbon monoxide, an odorless, colorless and deadly gas. Read more guidance on safe generator use here.
- Consumers Energy will trim or remove trees interfering with electric restoration activities. Once safe to do so, clean-up of debris from tree trimming or removal during a storm emergency is the responsibility of individual property owners.
- In some cases, the mast that holds the electric service wires to a home or business may have been damaged or torn away. Crews will reconnect the wires to a home, but only a licensed electrician can repair or replace a mast or a cable.
Consumers Energy is Michigan’s largest energy provider, providing natural gas and/or electricity to 6.7 million of the state’s 10 million residents in all 68 Lower Peninsula counties.
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