Nearly 13,000 without power in Greater Lansing area as more storms approach

LANSING – Nearly 13,000 people across Ingham, Eaton and Clinton counties are without power after severe storms rolled through the area Friday night. 

And a storm blowing into the area could cause more outages, a meteorologist said. 

Lansing Board of Water and Light, Consumers Energy and DTE Energy are reporting around 10,800 customers are still without power as of 5:30 p.m. Saturday. 

If your power is out and you don't have a generator to keep air conditioning going, there are cooling centers available. Find out where on LSJ.com.

Most of the outages are in:

• Lansing, where the number of reported outages started skyrocketing past 5,000 late Saturday afternoon.
• Eaton County, where the Consumers outage map shows about 4,800 customers without power.
• Clinton County, where the Consumers outage map shows 2,198 customers without power.

Heather Orow, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Grand Rapids, said more storms will start hitting Lansing later in the afternoon and could result in more outages. 

"These storms have the potential to produce damaging wind gusts, which could take down trees and power lines," she said. 

Forecasters are predicting scattered wind gusts of up to 75 mph. 

The storms also could delay ongoing work to restore power, Orow said. 

Estimates for power restoration vary: DTE originally estimated power restoration around 3:30 p.m. on its outage map but now does not have times available. The Consumers outage map indicates the utility is waiting for crews to finish investigating and provide estimates.

BWL is working to restore power as quickly as possible but many estimates for remaining outages stretch into the late evening hours.

Breina Pugh, the utility's manager of community relations, said there are extra crews out working to take care of outages as quickly as possible.

"We are doing everything we can to get those restored," she said.

A spokesperson for Consumers has not yet returned a request for comment.

Factoring in the heat wave

An excessive heat warning remains in effect until 8 p.m. Saturday, according to the National Weather Service. 

The heat index could reach as high as 110 degrees Fahrenheit. 

"The hot and humid air will create dangerous conditions, particularly for the elderly and those with pre-existing health conditions," according to the National Weather Service.

"Heat-related illnesses will be possible for those participating in extended outdoor activities today."

This story will be updated.

Contact Megan Banta at (517) 377-1261 or mbanta@lsj.com. Follow her on Twitter @MeganBanta_1. 

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