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FirstEnergy hopes to restore all service in windblown areas of Ohio, Pa. by Sunday night
By Carl Chancellor and Katie Byard
Beacon Journal staff writers
Published on Thursday, Sep 18, 2008
Thousands of Akron-area residents who lost electric power following last Sunday's massive windstorm could find themselves left in the dark through the weekend.
FirstEnergy Corp. spokesman Steve Strah predicted that electric service would be restored to all of its 2.2 million customers in Ohio and western Pennsylvania by late Sunday night, a full week after the remnants of Hurricane Ike rumbled through the area.
Strah, who answered questions during Mayor Don Plusquellic's weekly news conference Wednesday, said more than 2,800 workers, including more than 300 FirstEnergy employees just returned from the Gulf Coast, are working to restore service.
The mayor said he drove around several neighborhoods following the storm and ''couldn't believe'' the amount of damage.
''We're a couple of thousand miles from the shoreline where this storm hit originally,'' Plusquellic said. ''I can't imagine the damage in those areas.
The mayor said city crews have removed most of the large trees and tree limbs that were blocking streets, including a tree that was blocking a portion of West Exchange Street in front of the Akron City Women's Club.
Asked about removing fallen tree limbs in city parks, including a tree that fell on and damaged playground equipment at Hardesty Park on the city's west side, the mayor said, ''We have to prioritize.
''This is like triage. You have to do those things that are absolutely necessary first.''
FirstEnergy Corp. spokesman Mark Durbin said power was back on to about 90 percent of FirstEnergy customers in Northeast Ohio, but about 88,000 customers remained without power Wednesday — including about 11,000 in the Akron area and about 35,000 in the Cleveland area.
That's down from a peak of about 1 million.
Statewide, about 900,000 homes and businesses were reported still without power Wednesday. About 2.6 million Ohio customers lost power because of the storm.
The storm is blamed for at least 50 deaths in 11 states from the Gulf Coast to Michigan. At least six deaths were reported in Ohio.
About 35,000 American Electric Power homes and businesses in Stark and Carroll counties also remain without electricity down from a peak of about 69,000 on Monday. There are an additional 6,600 AEP customers without power in Wayne County.
AEP spokeswoman Shelly Haugh said it could be midnight Friday before power is restored to 90 percent of affected customers.
A scattering of schools remained closed Wednesday in Stark County.
Shelters created
The Stark County Regional Chapter of the American Red Cross set up two shelters for those without power. Cots and food are available. The shelters are at Edgewood Community Center, 6852 Market Ave. N., Plain Township, and Peace Evangelical Church, 3828 Cleveland Ave. S.E., Canton Township. Just five people had signed up to stay at Edgewood.
On Wednesday, it served 80 meals and snacks to displaced residents. Another 275 meals and snacks were distributed throughout the county.
By dinner, 200 meals had been served.
For information on the American Red Cross shelters in Stark, call 330-453-0146.
No schools were closed Wednesday in Summit County.
FirstEnergy officials have said the storm is the most devastating in recent memory.
Durbin said workers have made many of the repairs affecting big chunks of customers.
Crews are now getting to ''individual outages — say one customer here, two customers over there.''
While small numbers of customers are affected, one crew must still be deployed for each repair, Durbin said.
Areas hit hard are frequently those with larger trees and lots of trees, Durbin said.
''This was an extended three- or four-hour period'' of high winds, he said. ''That constant barrage of the winds tends to weaken and crack a limb off, or the tree itself . . . might fall over.''
Crews from all over
Crews have been brought in from FirstEnergy operations in the Toledo area, Pennsylvania and New Jersey to help restore power.
FirstEnergy workers arrived in Ohio on Wednesday from the Galveston/Houston area, where they had been restoring power after Hurricane Ike hit last week.
Outside of the Akron area, about 1,600 FirstEnergy customers remain without electricity in the Kent area; fewer than 500 have no power in northern Summit County. In Medina County, about 400 customers are still in the dark. In western Stark County and Massillon, there were 1,200 customers without power.
In Summit, real estate tax relief is being offered for property owners who sustained damage to their property in the storm.
Damaged property value reduction applications can be obtained by calling the Summit County fiscal office at 330-643-8654, e-mailing the office at summittreas@summitoh.net or by visiting the office's Web site at http://www.co.summit.oh.us/fiscaloffice. Click on ''Documents and Forms Auditor Division,'' scroll to ''DTE Form 26.''
Applications also will be available at public forums on the 2008 reappraisal from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. today at the Polish American Club, 472 Glenwood Ave., Akron; and 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday-Sept. 25 and Sept. 29-Oct. 1 at the Chenoweth golf course banquet hall, 3087 Chenoweth Road, Green.
Completed forms should be mailed to the fiscal office at 175 S. Main St., Room 304, Akron, OH 44308.
The filing deadline is Dec. 31.
Under Ohio law, items not covered include landscaping, trees, residential fencing and personal items such as sofas, chairs, computers and televisions.
Carl Chancellor can be reached at 330-996-3725 or cchancellor@thebeaconjournal.com. Katie Byard can be reached at 330-996-3781 or kbyard@thebeaconjournal.com. Beacon Journal staff writers Kathy Antoniotti and Bill Lilley contributed to this article.
Thousands of Akron-area residents who lost electric power following last Sunday's massive windstorm could find themselves left in the dark through the weekend.
Get the full article here.
Comments
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Barberton, OH
Posted 08:11 AM, 09/18/2008
My power, and my entire street is still out. Could anyone tied to Ohio Edison, PLEASE send someone to my hidden street of Grace in Barberton. We're going crazy over there.
akron, oh
Posted 08:21 AM, 09/18/2008
why hasn't akron offered some free meals I have lost everthing in our fridge and had to buy meals all week for 5 of us and now they are saying it could be midnight sunday this is just unbeliveable
Akron, OH
Posted 08:43 AM, 09/18/2008
ORA, if you were on welfare you'd be able to get up to $1500 of free food to replace the loss. Isn't that fair? (Sense the sarcasm?) I went grocery shopping on Friday and then again Sunday morning to get a few things I didn't get at the first store and it's all gone. $200 worth and I can't claim it because my deductible is $500. I'm on the last block in Firestone Park that is without power. I'm also the only one on the block with children. Thank God we have water.
Posted 08:58 AM, 09/18/2008
>>Crews are now getting to ''individual outages — say one customer here, two customers over there.''<< Oh really First Energy? There are 400 residents in my neighborhood still without power. So glad you can take care of "individual outages" now.
Posted 09:12 AM, 09/18/2008
I dont think not having power is all that bad, being that accesibility to other services such as food, clothing, transportation, even hotels for a night is still extremely available. I know, I know, not having electricity really bothered me due to my addiction to my computer and my TV. What really bothers me about all this power outages is how power is distribulted. Many years ago, when electricity was first developed and distributed, the entire electrical infrastructure should have been placed underground, except of course for power generation plants, sub-stations and high-tension lines. People have told me that its too expensive to do. This might be true now, but if these types of system was developed many years ago, this type of system would have been developed and inovated and improved upon to improve implimentation of it over the years, making it even more cheaper to do than it is now. Stringing wires overhead on poles is in itself dangerous and I would think, over long periods of time, not very cost effective. One has to wonder where these electric companies are placing importance on; service to you the customer or service to their stockholders and company executives' pay. To me, this all boils down to the bottom line; our capitalistic view on profit and where and how it is used.
Akron, OH
Posted 09:15 AM, 09/18/2008
Mebbe some of these whiney folks would be happier iff'n they lived down on the gulf coast, where it'll be months before services are restored.
Posted 09:19 AM, 09/18/2008
I don't live on the Gulf Coast because I'm smart enough to not live where hurricanes hit every year. I live in North East Ohio where I pretty much figured I was safe from hurricane damage. So I'm going to whine about it and the ineptitude of customer service at my electricity provider.
akron, oh
Posted 09:22 AM, 09/18/2008
Mary I know yes I just read on line in news net 5 about the extra money people on food stamps could get and I bet some who was not even without power will apply and get it and us who live paycheck to paycheck and have lost everthing in our fridge will not be able to get one bit of help,as it is the people who answer the phone for first energy sound like that could care less,
Posted 09:45 AM, 09/18/2008
There still are at least 27 houses out here in the NE corner of Tallmadge. Many of us have well water so along with no power, we have NO WATER. There still are power lines down- (real safe) and you can't buy a generator to save your life. I have lost all the food in my refrigerator and my deep freezer melted all over my basement. I don't receive food stamps, who is going to cover all my losses? ME thats who. I will have to pull up all the flooring in my basement, and Spend the next week doing laundry for the wet towels we tried to soak it up with in the Dark. Gas is costing me over $50 a day to run a borrowed generator. Not to mention my family has to leave the house to shower or use the bathroom. Will I see a reduction on my first Energy Bill for this week with out electricity? Where is the Summit County assistance? Oh, thats right, I did what I was suposed to do, I finished high school, finished college, got a job, so now, I am at the bottom of the list.
Posted 10:29 AM, 09/18/2008
Natural Disasters have been known to man for a very long time. One cannot prepare themselves for what can come our way, yet it can stike anywhere. Thus if one should always have a suitcase or 2 ready to travel with clothing, personal care items, medications, wipes, personal papers, dry foods such as jerky, cereal, dry milk, water, almost anything comes in ready to eat packages today and insurance. Alot say they cannot afford insurance, yet how often do you go out to eat, solons, movies, drink, smoke, etc etc etc. I'm not saying you have to give up ALL your extra's just use some common sense! I have often heard the expression" oh it will never happen here"!! It can happen anywhere to anyone at anytime. Moderation! Conserve! Be gracious for what you do have for tomorrow may not be here!! Treasure the moment. I have lived without power while a natural disaster was in the works of being rebuilt & you can always make the best of what seems like a doomed situation. I have seen first hand how our men & women pull together & work countless hors restoring our society. I've also heard "yes but they are getting time & a half". You get out there & work in the danger that our electricians, plumbers, tree & debris cleanup (and our tv anchors who keep us informed) are exposed to where NO MONEY is worth what they have to go through.. yet.. they are DEDICATED!!!Positive thinking, positive results.
akron, oh
Posted 10:35 AM, 09/18/2008
Sara I know how you feel we could not even afford a generator even if they were available I read on news net 5 (here at work) Lowes shipped all there's to texas,I did get a bag of free ice from gaint eagle,we put that in the cooler to keep my husband's insulin safe.I have also bought about 10 bags I tried to save the food until I saw it was not going to come back on within the 48 hrs.I am really tired.I too am going to have to pay for our losses now if we lived on the gulf coast at least FEMA would help us.
Barberton, OH
Posted 10:51 AM, 09/18/2008
The other thing people need to realize is that in Houston and other areas of Texas, their extended power outages are due in many cases from property damage, which is something they can make a claim on. While us without power can do nothing really but suffer while we wait for those in higher tax brackets to get their service restored first, because if they can get to 'singular outages' of one or two houses, then their priorites are screwed up seeing as I know of quite a few streets in Barberton that are just completely out of power still.
Akron, OH
Posted 11:29 AM, 09/18/2008
Too bad the unfortunate people of Barbertucky don't have the perks of their fellow storm victims in Bath, where they have Consuela on the treadmill powering the back-up generators. Just be thankful no one has pulled your meters. Yet.
akron, oh
Posted 11:30 AM, 09/18/2008
diane you must have power we did have things that would be necessary for a short period but now this is just unbelieveable,they should have keep the crews here until at least monday before sending any one down to texas we would have our power by now and then they could have gone.you probably didn'at even lose power so you lost nothing.I have lost a lot and because I don't qualify for welfare there is no help for our family,we do have insurance but with a 500 deductible.
