A multi-transformer blow-up in East Chicago has left more people without power and taken power from some who’d just gotten it back.
Kevin Mejia, who’s running for an at-large seat on East Chicago’s City Council, was shopping at the Dollar General on Indianapolis Boulevard and Chicago Avenue when he and other customers heard a loud boom, he told the Post-Tribune Tuesday. The lights went out, and everyone in the store was evacuated, he said.
As they were outside, Mejia saw three giant green flashes light up the sky, followed by loud buzzing, he said. He then jumped in his car and headed toward 149th Avenue and the bridge where there’s a large transformer.
“I headed toward the north side and called the fire department. Firefighters were out there, but the poles were still blowing up along Railroad and 149th, ” Mejia said. “These folks had just gotten their power back, too, and now we’ve lost ours.
“It’s very interesting having power and now being without; we have tape on the fridge so no one opens it, and I saw people arguing at Strack’s because they want their turn to charge their phones since the schools don’t have power again. But I’ll also tell you this is the most amount of neighbors I’ve ever met, and everyone’s coming together. Sounds cliché, but it’s nice.”
Neither East Chicago Fire Chief Marc Escobedo nor Assistant Chief Ron Bergren returned requests for comment. A spokeswoman from NIPSCO issued a statement acknowledging the fire.
“NIPSCO was notified of an incident near 149th Street and Railroad Avenue in East Chicago, Indiana,” the statement said. “Local first responders, along with NIPSCO personnel, responded to the situation and worked to ensure the area was safe. No injuries have been reported.”
Over in East Chicago’s Roxana neighborhood, Chris Myers swept grass clippings off his lawn. He and his family haven’t had power since the storm ripped through Northwest Indiana Aug. 11, and he’s anxious to get back to work.
“I work from home for a company in New Jersey, and we have offices in South Bend and Carmel, but I know Carmel’s flooded right now,” Myers said. “They’ve been watching the situation and just want me to be safe, but I really kind of want to get back to it. We have a generator, but it’s not enough.”
Like Mejia, Myers has also noticed neighbors helping each other out.
“We have a lot of elderly folks here, and people are sharing their generators. Everyone’s a little on edge, but we’re all doing our best,” he said.
Another neighbor, whose name he asked not be used, is frustrated with the city’s administration for what he sees as a lack of communication.
“There’s no one trying to help us,” he said. “There’s no statement from the mayor on when we’ll have power back, and when we call NIPSCO, they’re giving us attitude,” he said.
Michelle L. Quinn is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
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