LAKE COUNTY, Ind. (WLS) — Residents of Northwest Indiana are bracing for another power-less day this Friday, as outages continue to affect thousands in the area.
Adding to the turmoil is a freshly filed class-action lawsuit targeting the Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSCO). The legal complaint alleges that NIPSCO failed to adequately manage vegetation near power lines, leading to tree-related power outages that have disrupted daily life.
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NIPSCO has responded to these allegations with a firm rebuttal.
“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.”
As the legal battle looms, the community is rallying together, providing free meals to neighbors as they anxiously await the restoration of power.
“The food is good. I’m just blessed to get something to eat,” Gary resident Dajon Holman said.
This could be the only hot meal Holman has as he and other people in Gary endure another day without power.
“We don’t have electricity; so it’s kind of hard to eat,” Holman said. “The food gets spoiled and try to get some type of resource. And I see y’all helping us out. We’re just grateful for it. That’s all.”
Sponsored by the city of Gary, the City Life Center of Northwest Indiana has been serving three meals a day since the Aug. 11 storms caused a massive power outage in the area.
Nearly 23,000 people in Gary and another 6,000 in Portage won’t get their service back until Tuesday.
Organizers said they’ll keep the hub open every day to provide food and resources until everyone is back online.
“We have charging stations where they can charge their phones,” said Marsha Jones, city of Gary hub head volunteer. “We provide essentials like diapers, housegood items, things that nature, just trying to support our community during this time.”
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And as the community continues to come together to help one another, NIPSCO crews are working day and night to turn the lights back on.
People in Hammond could see this by Saturday night, but folks in the Schererville area are in the dark again after a power pole came down, which was major setback.
“The lights started flickering in the store,” Wendy Komascar said. “Yeah, it was scary. It’s like everybody in the store is going, ‘Oh no, not again.'”
And some people living in the Woods Park subdivision say the power outage has created a sewer and water problem for them.
Neighbors said not only do they no longer have electricity, but some people don’t have running water or working bathrooms.
“I don’t have a septic problem,” Gary resident Ron Mazan said. “But I have a septic tank, but people who are hooked up with a new sewer system in this area have been experiencing problems with backups in their house. That’s what I was told. And it all depends on the heavy running of a grinder system and it runs on 220 volts and the outcome is a lot of them were just backed up in their houses.”
More food and resource giveaways are planned for Friday in several communities. They’ll be serving lunch as well as dinner and also have access to shelter and hot showers for people who need them.
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