Thousands In Vermont Still Without Power After Heavy Snow

Several thousand homes in Vermont are still without power after a powerful storm dumped snow on areas of the state causing one of the worst power outages in recent years. Saturday marks the third day more than 13,000 Vermont customers were without power.

The Associated Press reported the head of the Vermont Electric Cooperative said assessments of the power lines affected show restoring power to remaining customers without power will take at least the weekend. At it’s peak, the storm caused power outages to roughly 100,000 customers.

A separate company, Washington Electric Cooperative said some 1,700 of its customers were also still without power following the storm, estimating it could take days for power to be restored. As a result, the company is urging those without power to turn to friends and family. “We are encouraging people to reach out to friends and family with power for shelter,” general manager Patricia Richards said in the report, adding the Red Cross will also help coordinate shelter if needed.

Green Mountain Power, the state’s largest utility said the outage aftermath of this storm is worse than those caused by Tropical Storm Irene in 2011, which affected the entire Eastern seaboard.

Vermont’s Gov. Peter Shumlin says crews are working tirelessly to recover power lines that are reportedly covered in as much as 8 inches of snow. “It was an extremely difficult storm,” Shumlin said. While parts of Vermont received slightly more than a foot of snow during the storm Tuesday and Wednesday, other areas, like Orwell, Vermont, saw 19.5 inches.

Residents are reminded by utility companies not to try to clear the snow or fallen debris from power lines themselves, and instead wait for professionals to do so or for the snow to melt.