'I'm tired of being cold': Some IPL customers could be without power for another day

As powerful winds battered their westside neighborhood Saturday, Sandi Proud's husband told her to knock on wood.

Despite the dangerous storm outside, their lights were still on and their cell phones were still charging. 

That changed about two hours later when their power went out. By Monday afternoon, it still hadn't returned, and patience was wearing thin.

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For Proud, the last straw was learning that some customers would have to deal with the darkness for another day.

"I told my husband it was all his fault," she said Monday with a laugh. "I was so frustrated and this morning and just said to myself, 'OK. That's it. I'm tired of being cold and just grungy.' It's ridiculous. And to hear that it could be tomorrow? Oh my gosh."

At its peak, the Saturday wind storm that tore through the state and caused widespread damage left more than 131,000 Hoosiers without power.

By Monday afternoon, officials from Indianapolis Power & Light and Duke Energy reported that the number of customers still in the dark has been slashed to just over 4,200.

As of 1:09 p.m., IPL reported 3,555 outages. Duke Energy had just 705 outages at that time, including 39 affected customers in Hamilton County. Those numbers are a far cry from the 55,000 IPL customers and the 76,500 Duke customers without power when the storm was at its worst.

Mike Holtsclaw, IPL's director of engineering, said that while crews hope to restore power to most customers by midnight, restoration efforts will extend into yet another day.

"There will be some that will be out into the day on Tuesday, but hopefully by Tuesday evening, we should have everybody back in who lost power from the storm," he said. 

Holtsclaw added that dispatch efforts are focused on those who lost power on Saturday, but new outages continue to come in. Since Sunday night, IPL reports that about 400 additional customers have called in outages.

Holtsclaw said some priority was being given to customers who have been without power the longest -- some up to 48 hours. "We recognize that and were doing everything to get them back on. Again, our apologies for the inconvenience, but we want to keep everybody safe."

IPL has brought in additional crews since Saturday, getting assistance from the likes of Duke Energy, Vectren and Dayton Power and Light. Holtsclaw said there are roughly 66 total crews in the field, representing more than 300 lineman trying to bring light back to Indianapolis.

"One of the challenges we have had is some of the resources that we would normally reach out to are in Georgia and Florida and down in the south still helping with hurricane restoration," Holtsclaw said. "We've been a little challenged in finding some resources."

Resources aside, Holtsclaw said the biggest challenge is the sheer number of outages and the time it takes to repair damaged infrastructure. For pole repairs, the process can take six to eight hours. 

Holtsclaw said the weekend storm was one of the worst wind events the city has seen since the early '80s. He noted that the last big wind-only event was in March 2009, when 60 mph wind gusts knocked out power for more than 22,800 customers.

Proud said when the power went out Saturday in the Chapel Hill neighborhood, her family tried to stay positive. They grabbed a pizza and hoped that it would be back later that night.

When they woke to a cold, dark house Sunday, they knew things had taken a turn for the worst. 

They used the power in their cars to keep phones charged. When it got too cold, Proud, her husband and her son found warmth at her parents house.

They went back home Sunday night and lit candles, hoping that would be the last night they would have to sleep in such conditions. She said the family's cat and two dogs were also eager for things to warm up. 

"It's freezing. This morning got down to to 58 degrees inside the house. I had to help my husband open the garage door without power so he could get to work," she said. "As far as food, we've probably lost everything in our freezer. And the bad thing is one of our dogs is diabetic and he has insulin and it has to stay cold. We grabbed some of the ice packs that were in the freezer and put those with it, but we just refilled his insulin."

Dericka Hemphill, a resident who lives in the area of 46th Street and Emerson Avenue, said she was disappointed that IPL didn't take steps to provide relief to customers dealing with long outages.

She was without power nearly 36 hours.

"My frustration was more so from a communication aspect. IPL, keep us updated. And I don't necessarily want to see photos on Twitter or Facebook of you guys near trees. I want to see IPL trucks in residential neighborhoods restoring power actively, because that is what everyone is looking for."

Hemphill said that while she understand that these kinds of events are unexpected, seeking help from established community partners to set up warming or charging centers may be able to ease the pain. 

"They should be a lot more prepared for their community because for most areas, it's the only power company people can subscribe to," Hemphill said.

For southside resident Blake Mennel who got his power back around 5 a.m. Monday, transparency is the key.

"The most frustrating part of dealing with IPL was there was very limited interaction. They disconnected my calls multiple times when I tried to get updates," Mennel said. 

Call IndyStar reporter Justin L. Mack at 317-444-6138. Follow him on Twitter: @justinlmack