CONCORD, NH – As of 12 p.m. Monday, almost thousands of customers remained without power across New Hampshire as a storm featuring heavy rain and strong winds overnight moves through the region. Wind gusts were expectd to reach up to 65 mph.
“Even after the rain stops rivers will continue to crest into Tuesday, so take precautions now as no one is immune from the potential for flooding from this storm,” said Governor Chris Sununu. “Respect barriers and stay safe by avoiding flooded roadways. Give hard-working crews plenty of space to do their jobs as they restore power and clear debris from roads.”
Eversource, the state’s largest power provider, was reporting 27,000+ outages as of noon across New Hampshire according to its outage map, down from 32,000+ at 9 a.m. However, the number of outages in Manchester was up from 120 to 419 in the span of three hours due to downed power lines, including an Eversource work crew addressing an issue on Lake Shore Road.
Meanwhile, local flooding was an issue earlier in the day, including on Lincoln Street which had to be closed around 10 a.m. near the Easter Seals building.
Report power outages to your utility provider every 24 hours until it is restored:
Eversource – 1-800-662-7764
Liberty Utilities – 1-855-349-9455
NH Electric Co-Op- 1-800-343-6432
Unitil- 1-888-301-7700
“Keep you and your family safe if you lose power,” said Robert Buxton, Director of the New Hampshire Department of Safety’s Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management. “Practice power outage safety. If you come across downed wires, stay away and call 911. Never run a generator indoors.”
Buxton makes the following safety recommendations:
- Stay informed by signing up for local weather alerts and monitoring National Weather Service radio or broadcast reports.
- Drivers should use extra caution, go slow and be alert for crews clearing debris.
- Use flashlights, rather than candles, for emergency lighting.
- Never drive through flooded roadways. Turn around, don’t drown!
- Monitor road closures at www.newengland511.org.
