Where’s the plan?
Todd Heywood of Lansing Online News asked BWL’s Lark about an emergency plan for incidents like this. After initially suggesting there wasn’t one, Lark assured the audience at the Saturday presser that they would publish the plan on their website. We’re still waiting.
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Does BWL know about all the outages?
Despite assurances from BWL’s General Manager J. Peter Lark, a number of people in the audience seemed unpersuaded that the company even yet still knows about all of the locations. Overnight increases in the total number of customers without service raises questions about whether the company is just finding out about some customers now. Also in question are people who were told they had to hire an electrician to repair the “mast” (the structure on the home that connects the line to the residence). After doing so, how do they get BWL to turn the power on? Some are still waiting though the rest of their street has been restored.
- IF YOU ARE STILL WITHOUT POWER - Email Lansing City Council President Carol Wood at [email protected] - she plans to supply BWL with a list to check.
- 1:00 p.m. update - Carol Wood just posted to Facebook news from BWL for people whose power is still out:
- Information from BWL - Beginning tomorrow, Monday, Dec. 30, the Lansing Board of Water & Light will open two customer walk-in centers for those who remain without power. The customer walk-in centers will be staffed by BWL employees who will provide updates on restoration efforts. BWL staff will also confirm that customers outage or down line reports are in the BWL system for restoration. The customer walk-in centers are in response to the difficulty that some customers are having in receiving timely information on their outage. The customer walk-in center hours will be from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. until further notice. The customer walk-in centers are located at:
BWL Customer Service Center, 1232 Haco Drive, Lansing
BWL REO Town Headquarters, 1201 S. Washington Ave., Lansing
Are you sure the National Guard could not have helped?
Mayors Virg (Lansing) Bernero and Nathan (East Lansing) Triplett explained that they only declare an emergency and call in the Guard when local police and fire services are overwhelmed. One issue, however, is how they define “overwhelmed.” Police and fire agencies have been able to keep up with calls for service, but they clearly do not have the capacity for traffic control, tree removal, etc.
Also of concern is the explanation that the Guard has no capacity to work on power lines and that their large generators are only able to power facilities, not residences. But power line workers need support from tree-trimming crews - couldn’t the Guard help with those duties? And why no National Guard generators at places like Burcham Hills?
Where’s Governor Rick Snyder?
Tens of thousands are people are freezing in the dark without power and where is Governor Rick Snyder? Mayor Virg Bernero said he hasn’t talked with him in weeks. Remember New Jersey Governor Chris Christie after Hurricane Sandy? Doesn’t the governor want to show voters he cares?
When will it be over?
The press conference confirmed communication failures on the part of the officials involved. But when will that get better? Why not now? When will the outages be over? When will the community return to normal? When will the powers-that-be get their act together so people can make wise choices? Temperatures are expected to plunge into single digits tonight. What should people whose power is out do now? Move their families, especially the elderly and infirm, to other locations? Can people with pets still take them to the Ingham County Animal Shelter? When will those who should have the answers start communicating effectively?
