57K CT Residents Without Power As Major Road Closures Reported Sunday

More than 57,000 Connecticut residents are still without power as of Sunday afternoon. Eversource is reporting 57,280 outages and United Illuminating Co. 405.

Towns reporting more than 1,000 outages as of Sunday afternoon include: Bristol, 3,915, Brookfield, 1,984, East Haddam, 2,447, Groton, 1,546, Harwinton, 2,268, Ledyard, 2,827, Montville, 2,663, New Britain, 4,144, New Canaan, 3,780, New Fairfield, 3,509, Newton, 1,055, Norwalk, 3,710, Plainville, 3,017, Salisbury, 2,792, Southington, 1,714, Stamford, 1,133, Torrington, 3,869, Waterford, 1,679, and Weston, 1,225.

"Last night’s severe storms left thousands of homes in the region without power, and while utility crews immediately began working on restoration, they believe that repairs in certain areas may take several days due to the scale of damage across the area," said Gov. Ned Lamont.

"Additionally, the state’s emergency response team remains in contact with every affected town and stands ready to send additional support the moment a municipality requests it. CT has been through storms like this before, and we get through them by looking out for one another," Lamont said. "Stay clear of any downed power lines. If you rely on medically necessary equipment and lose power, or if you have an emergency, call 9-1-1. Stay safe, and we’ll keep you updated."

Eversource officials said the company is bringing in crews from around the area, including Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Canada to help assist with restoration.

As of 2 p.m., Eversource has restored power to roughly 60,000 customers since the storm began.

Approximately 62,000 customers in Connecticut remain without power because of the storm and crews will stay on the job until service to all affected customers is restored.

“This storm was significantly more powerful and widespread than was forecasted and caused substantial damage in several states throughout the entire region, including Connecticut, and we continue to assess the widespread and extensive damage to the electric system,” said Eversource President of Connecticut Electric Operations Don Scacco. “The intense storm with up to 65+ mph winds brought down tree limbs and branches onto electric lines and equipment causing power outages in communities across the state. Our crews in the field worked all night and remain on the job responding as quickly and safely as possible to address community priorities such as blocked roads while also clearing damage and making necessary repairs to the electric system and will continue working around-the-clock until every customer has their power back on.” 

Eversource reminds customers to always stay clear of downed wires – including keeping pets away – and report them immediately to 9–1–1 and to report any outage online at www.eversource.com, or by calling 800-286-2000. The energy company also reminds customers who are without power and using a generator to be sure the generator is located well away from their home or business and that the transfer switch is working properly.

More stormy weather is ahead

"Monday is a First Alert Weather Day as periods of heavy rain are expected, with the potential to cause flooding. A Flood Watch has been issued for the entire state, beginning late tonight and continuing through early Tuesday," according to WFSB 3 TV meteorologists.

"There is still some uncertainty regarding exactly how much rain will fall, but most locations are expected to pick up 1–3 inches. Some forecast models continue to indicate locally higher amounts of 6 inches or more. If those higher totals materialize, the flood threat would increase significantly," WFSB 3 TV meteorologists said.

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Road closures as reported by the CT DOT and local agencies:

Brookfield First Selectman Steve Dunn said, "First, we have no injuries reported from the storm. Our Emergency Management team, Police, Fire, EMS and Public Works are all working to ensure the safety of our residents. We started last night to review damage and first, ensure that no one was injured and then started documenting damage. Eversource, in cooperation with our EMD, has surveyed the damage throughout town and are prioritizing their list in conjunction Eversource has brought 8 Crews into town to clear downed trees and power lines. They are committed to Brookfield until full power is restored. Public Works has been clearing our roads that do not involve power lines. As of this message, they have cleared all roads that do not have power lines down.

The following roads remain closed: Elbow Hill Rd, North Mountain (from Laurel Hill to Gereg Glen), Twilight Ln, Valley View @ Blackwood Rd, Rocky Rd @ Huckleberry Hill Rd, Riverford Rd from Long Meadow to Logging Trail.

At the time of the storm, Eversource reported 3,100 homes without power. That is down to 2,000 or so this morning. There is substantial tree and power line damage on Elbow Hill. That line feeds many of the house on the east side of town. Eversource prioritizes clearing roads and restoring power to give the highest number of residences power as quickly as possible."

East Haven Police Department Please avoid the area of Strong Street Ext. due to a large tree across the roadway which also took wires down with it. UI has been notified and will be assessing the damage. In the meantime please stay away from the area as it is posing a hazard and is impassable.

Madison CT Police Department ROAD CLOSURE UPDATE

The following roads remain either fully or partially closed due to storm-related issues: 1. Route 79 and Dogwood Lane area 2. Horse Pond Road and Dairy Hill Road 3. Horse Pond Road and Wickford Place 4. Race Hill Road 5. Colonial Road and Milo Drive 6. Colonial Road and Overbrook Road7. Harkness Drive 8. Areas of 50 and 100 Summer Hill Road 9. Area of 20 Hickory Lane 10. Linden Lane 11. Granby Drive. Please avoid these areas if possible and use caution if traveling nearby. Crews are working to clear the roads as quickly and safely as possible.

Town of Greenwich: Storm update as of 1:00 from Greenwich Emergency Operations Director, Joe Laucella.....As of 1:00 PM, we are down to approximately 20 partially or fully obstructed roads throughout town. Eversource crews continue working alongside Town departments to make these locations safe, remove hazards, and reopen roadways as quickly as possible. Eversource has advised that isolated pop-up thunderstorms remain possible this afternoon, with forecasts calling for hazardous wind gusts of 55–65 mph and increasing chances of rain into the evening. Should these weather conditions develop, restoration efforts could be delayed depending on the severity of the impacts. At this time: Approximately 832 customers remain without power. There are more than 40 active storm-related incidents still requiring response throughout the community. Town departments and officials continue coordinating closely with Eversource to address public safety concerns, clear roadways, and restore power to affected areas. Response and restoration operations will continue throughout today and are expected to extend into tomorrow as crews work through the remaining outages and storm-related damage. Thank you to everyone for your continued hard work and support as we respond to this event

Danbury Mayor Roberto Alves said, "Please be advised there are eight active Eversource crews in the area working with our Forestry Department, Emergency Management, Public Works, Fire and Police Department to restore power and clear blocked roadways. The following roads continue to be impacted: Rose Street, Old Neversink Road, Ridge Road, Hawthorne Cove Road, and Cannon Drive"

Town of Bethel - CT: The general purpose room at the Bethel Municipal Center located at 1 School Street will be open for a cooling center and charging center from 1pm to 8pm today Sunday July 5. Please enter from the front of the building by the cooling/charging sign by the ramp and stairs to the right of the gym entrance. Public bathrooms are also available in the lobby. The Bethel Library is also open to all from 1pm to 5pm today for cooling and charging. Bring your own chargers and cords!

SALISBURY - US-44, Both Directions CLOSED between RT 112 & RT 126 because of multiple trees down in wires. Reported Saturday, July 4 at 7:56 pm.

NEW MILFORD - US-7, Both Directions CLOSED at Gaylord Rd because of a Tree down in wires. Reported Saturday, July 4 at 9:31 pm.

SEYMOUR - RT-334 Fountain Lake Rd CLOSED between Southwest Rd and Birmingham Blvd because of a Tree Down in wires. Reported Saturday, July 4 at 10:15 pm.

KENT - South Kent Rd (Both Directions) CLOSED between RT 341 & Spooner Hill Rd because of a Tree down in wires. Reported Saturday, July 4 at 10:40 pm.

SHARON - US-7, Both Directions CLOSED between RT 112 & RT 128 because of a Tree down in wires. Reported Saturday, July 4 at 11:02 pm.

CANAAN - US-7, Both Directions CLOSED between RT 126 & RT 112 because of a Tree down in wires. Reported Saturday, July 4 at 11:42 pm.

HADDAM - RT-196 Young St CLOSED between Moodus Rd and Wopowog Rd because of a Tree Down in wires. Reported Saturday, July 4 at 11:47 pm.

HADDAM - RT-151 Moodus Rd CLOSED at Salmon River Rd because of a Tree Down in wires. Reported Sunday, July 5 at 12:07 am.

STONINGTON - Route 184 (Both Directions) CLOSED between Taugwonk Road and Wheelers Road because of Tree down on wires (In Roadway). Reported Sunday, July 5 at 12:13 am.

TORRINGTON - SR-800 South Main St CLOSED at Lincoln Ave because of a Tree Down with wires. Reported Sunday, July 5 at 5:47 am.

FAIRFIELD - (CT-136, both directions) CLOSED at Sturges HWY because of tree (In Roadway with wires). Reported Sunday, July 5 at 9:13 am.

FAIRFIELD - Delays. RT 15 Southbound is congested between Exits 27 and 21 (5.6 miles). Reported Sunday, July 5 at 11:18 am.