A powerful storm ripped through Northwest Indiana Monday afternoon, leaving downed power lines and trees as outages reached about 52,000 households at its peak, with the Northern Indiana Public Service Co. reporting an estimated 59,000 customers impacted overall.
NIPSCO reported broken poles and crossarms, along with downed trees and power lines. Fallen trees and debris required extensive clearing before crews could safely assess damage and begin repairs.
The most impacted communities included Crown Point, Hobart, La Porte, Merrillville, Michigan City, Portage and St. John.
By noon Tuesday, NIPSCO said power was restored to about 56% of its affected customers while about 26,000 remained without service.
Schools closed in the Duneland School Corp. in Chesterton and the Hanover School Corp. in Cedar Lake because of the widespread power outages.
Duneland Superintendent Chip Pettit said power was restored at Liberty Elementary, Liberty Intermediate/Middle, Jackson and Brummitt elementaries Tuesday but the district’s bus barn remained without power.
Pettit said the fuel pumps at the bus barn require electricity to pump gas into the buses.
More Top Picks Best Label Makers For Organization
Hanover Community School Corp. Superintendent Mary Tracy-MacAulay said Hanover Central Middle School suffered roof damage and the high school lost power.
In Hobart, a homeowner on Ash Street assessed the damage from a 100-foot maple tree that fell on his home.
The homeowner, who asked not to be identified, said he wasn’t home when the storm hit but a neighbor told him a wind gust came from the east and took the tree down on the house. He said his three dogs were unhurt and he planned to stay with his parents.
Assistant Hobart Fire Chief Shawn Millard said trees and power lines were down across the city but there were no reports of injuries.
Crews worked to repair outages along 61st Avenue and Colorado Street just west of the planned Amazon data center site. Colorado Street was temporarily closed as crews repaired lines.
Freelance reporters Carole Carlson and Deborah Laverty contributed.