ComEd Dispatches Illinois Crews to Aid NIPSCO in Northwest Indiana Storm Recovery Efforts

LAKE COUNTY, Ind. (WLS) — This past Saturday brought a welcome announcement for the residents of northwest Indiana who have been grappling with power outages for almost two weeks.

Lending their support over the weekend, ComEd, in partnership with the Chicago Bears, joined forces to offer relief.

Since August 11, thousands of residents in Indiana have been navigating life without electricity as severe thunderstorms swept across the Chicago area, resulting in widespread power outages.

ABC7 Chicago is now streaming 24/7. Click here to watch

As of Saturday afternoon, energy provider NIPSCO reported that more than 30,000 customers in northwest Indiana were still in the dark, struggling with ongoing power disruptions.

In response to the continued outages, ComEd announced the deployment of 60 employees dedicated to assisting NIPSCO in their efforts to restore electricity to the affected areas in northwest Indiana.

More than 410,000 ComED customers had their power restored in northern Illinois after the severe weather, the company said.

The ComEd crews were expected to depart for Indiana around 3 p.m. Saturday. They expect the restoration efforts to last several more days.

Also Saturday, the Chicago Bears announced $200,000 in donations to storm relief efforts in southeast Cook County and northwest Indiana.

The team said $100,000 is going to Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Chicago and $100,000 is going to Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Gary.

Indiana Governor Mike Braun is asking the federal government to issue a major disaster declaration to help with relief efforts across the state. The request estimates property damage costs have topped $5 billion.

Meanwhile, a class-action lawsuit against Northern Indiana Public Service Company has been filed. The lawsuit claims NIPSCO inadequately performed vegetation management in and around power lines and that fallen trees led to power outages that impacted people’s lives.

The lawsuit filed on behalf of Indiana residents alleges the widespread outages could have been prevented. Attorneys representing plaintiffs claim NIPSCO failed to properly manage vegetation and did not conduct adequate inspections of utility poles and power lines.

NIPSCO denied the allegations, saying it maintains an active vegetation management program and plans to vigorously defend itself through the legal process.

The utility also addressed concerns from customers who remain without power while continuing to receive utility bills.

“With respect to customer’s bills, we’ve suspended any kind of disconnection through the next week,” said NIPSCO President Melody Birmingham. “We’ll continue to work with our customers and put programs in place for any customers who have a difficult time paying that bill.”

NIPSCO issued the following statement Friday:
“We strongly disagree with the characterization of NIPSCO’s vegetation management practices in the Amended Complaint and the various press conferences held by the law firm of Kenneth Allen Law Group. We will vigorously defend the company through the legal process. NIPSCO’s electric operations, including its active vegetation management program, are overseen by the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission. NIPSCO’s vegetation management spend has more than doubled since 2016, demonstrating our commitment and focus on maintaining a safe and reliable electric system. NIPSCO understands the impact that prolonged outages can have on our customers and communities, particularly following storms, and in particular, the severe weather events that caused unprecedented damage across NIPSCO’s electric system that recently transpired. Safety and reliability are fundamental to how we operate, and we have established processes and procedures to maintain our electric system, including our vegetation management program. Our immediate focus remains on restoring service to affected customers safely and as quickly as possible.”