Monday's storm left thousands of Mainers without power. Versant and Central Maine Power say that many will be without power until the end of the week.
And the effort to restore electric power could be slowed tonight as temperatures fall and the wind speeds rise. Maine Emergency Management spokesperson Vanessa Corson said that means Mainers must plan ahead.
"Are you going to go to a shelter? Do you know where the nearest one is to you? Are you going to go to a hotel? Does that hotel have power or a backup generator?" she said.
To find a shelter, Corson says you can check the Maine Emergency Management websiteor dial 2-1-1, a state help line.
To restore electric power, Central Maine Power spokesman Jonathan Breed said the utility has mustered a force of 1,400 line workers— more than the number that tackled the ice storm damage in 1998. Still, Breed said it will be days before all those who've lost power will get it back.
"Some interior parts of the state that are dealing with the flooding, dealing with the washed out roads, the blocked roads...it's gonna be a few more days before our crews can get in there and really understand the scope of the damage and begin to make repairs," Breed said.
Increasing winds tonight could also slow restoration efforts. But Versant President John Flynn said he thinks the winds will stay below the threshold speed that would prevent workers from working at the top of utility poles.
The high winds during Monday's storm pummeled Ellsworth so hard that they peeled back the roof of the elementary-middle school like a sardine can. Ellsworth resident Karen Mulhern lost power during the storm, which knocked trees down on her street. Tuesday morning she was checking on her neighbors.
"This is an elderly lady and we went out to supper with her last night and got her out of the house, and she spent the night at the next door neighbor's. And I'm going in there right now. So that's what the neighbors are doing, they're checking on everybody," she says.
Temperatures also dropped overnight. And for those like Stephanie Eldridge who lives in an apartment without a backup heat source, it's cold. Eldridge and her 8-year-old daughter showed up at an emergency shelter in Lewiston Wednesday looking for relief.
"We're sick. Me and my little are both sick so it would be nice to be able to have warm meals, hot tea, just be in a warm house," Eldridge said. "So, it's been rough. It's been rough not having the power to cook food and had to find a place to bring all of our food. The daycare was nice enough to take that in and store our food so we didn't lose all of that, too."
Eldridge said she'd gone shopping for a Christmas dinner just before she lost power Monday. She's also got presents at home that need wrapping. She's hoping power to her apartment building will be restored before Christmas.
Versant Power spokesperson Judy Long said about half of its customers were without power as of Tuesday afternoon. And Long says it might not be restored until the end of the week.
"Unfortunately, just due to the level of damage. The roads that have been closed, all of the downed lines, the need to take care of the emergencies. We definitely see this being a multi-day restoration and lasting through the end of the week," she says.
Long urges caution around downed power lines, and warns against cutting trees that are touching power lines.
As of 2:30 p.m. Wednesday, about 49,000 Versant customers were still without power, in addition to roughly 185,000 Central Maine Power customers.
