Connecticut Light & Power missed its self-imposed restoration estimates Friday morning by about 6,000 customers, but its president and chief operating officer promised it was on track to restore another 100,000 customers by Saturday morning.
That leaves about 200,000 customers without power going into Sunday, but Jeffrey Butler maintained the company is still on track to restore 99 percent of its customers by midnight Sunday.
Butler, who lives in Avon, is still without power himself since his generator failed earlier this week.
Living in the hard hit Farmington Valley, Butler said he knows first hand the type of damage the crews are dealing with, but refused to linger on his own situation.
Butler switched the conversation with reporters back to the magnitude of the storm and the damage it caused.
“The north central where you still see a lot of the outages that pocket has far more severe damages than a lot of parts of the state. That is where we’re putting our resources, that is where we’re focused today,” Butler said.
On Thursday evening Gov. Dannel P. Malloy directed the 100 National Guardsmen to work with CL&P crews clearing trees and limbs from wires and roads in Avon and Simsbury.
Malloy said the Federal Emergency Management Agency has approved the second portion of the emergency disaster declaration which will allow cities and towns to receive reimbursement for removing debris from the roadways.
The state is still working on getting personal assistance for homeowners impacted by the storm approved. Malloy expressed frustration at length of time its taken to receive the approvals from FEMA.
Also with temperatures expected to drop to 20 degrees Friday night, Malloy urged residents to seek shelter. There are 82 open at the moment. A complete list can be found by calling 2-1-1.
