Baltimore Gas and Electric Co. crews will spend this week restoring power to parts of ice-locked New England, where a fierce winter storm knocked out power to more than 1 million homes and businesses.
Approximately 70 BGE linemen and support personnel left Maryland on Saturday morning and will spend at least the rest of this week working in the Manchester, N.H., area. Northeast Utilities requested assistance after snow and ice storms cut power to more than 320,000 customers in that area. Seventy BGE contractors also are making the trip.
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“BGE stands ready to assist other utilities in need following major weather events,” Stephen Woerner, BGE senior vice president of gas and electric operations and planning, said in a statement released Saturday. “We recognize the unique challenges associated with snow and ice storms and are pleased to be able to assist with the restoration effort.”
In September, BGE crews were sent to the Texas Gulf Coast and Cleveland to help repair damage from Hurricane Ike. BGE is part of a mutual assistance network of utilities, with costs of emergency response paid by the requesting utility.
President Bush declared a state of emergency Sunday in New Hampshire and in nine of Massachusetts’ 14 counties, directing the Federal Emergency Management Agency to provide relief assistance.
New Hampshire, Massachusetts, New York and Maine declared either limited or full states of emergency Friday. Crews across the region reported the ice had destroyed utility poles, wires and other equipment, but said the extent of damage was unclear because some roads still were impassable.
Roughly 649,000 customers were still without power Sunday morning in New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Vermont, Maine and upstate New York. Utilities in hardest-hit New Hampshire said power might not be totally restored to the Granite State until Thursday or Friday.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
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