What to Know
- At its peak Monday, the storm knocked out power to nearly 1.5 million homes and business.
- Tens of thousands of customers remained in the dark early Tuesday.
- Some New England communities postponed trick-or-treating due to safety concerns including darkened streets, downed power lines, and debris.
Hundreds of thousands of customers throughout New England remain without power after a weekend storm brought violent winds and torrential rains to the region.
At the storm's peak Monday, more than 1.5 million customers were without electricity.
The two major electric utilities in Massachusetts were reporting more than 85,000 outages combined around 4 p.m. Tuesday. In New Hampshire, about 112,000 customers remained without service. Around 60,000 homes and businesses in Rhode Island were still in the dark, while Connecticut's utilities had about 44,000 outages.
In Vermont, Green Mountain Power reported around 118,000 outages at the peak, but that number is down to 16,000.
Meanwhile, more than 344,000 were still in the dark in Maine, where Gov. Paul LePage declared a state of emergency on Monday due to power outages.
The lack of power forced dozens of school districts across the region to cancel classes for the second consecutive day, while many towns postponed trick-or-treating until the weekend.
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In Andover, Massachusetts, the impact was still visible Tuesday as the community remained in the dark. More than 80 trees were toppled during the storm — more than two dozen of them landed on power lines. Some Bay State communities like Andover estimate it could be days before power is fully restored.
Andover Resident Janice Moegelin said the damage forced her and her son out of the house early.
"We like our coffee in the morning and when the coffee pot doesn't work you have to come out," she said. "My house is a mess. It's cold. We're miserable. We're spoiled," she added.
Resident Judy Bogosian had to spend the night at her friend's home.
"I was texting her and she said 'Come over, I have power.'" said Bogosian.
The two of them had the day off because schools weren't open.
"We are concerned it's October and we've already had two snow days or wind days," Bogosian said.
Dracut Deputy Police Chief David Chartrand says many intersections in town have no functioning street lights, putting the safety of children at risk.
Most major roads are open, but many side streets in some towns remain closed because of downed trees and flooding.
Winds are expected to pick up again during the day Tuesday, with 25 to 40 mph gusts across much of Massachusetts. Temperatures overnight will drop into the upper 20s to mid-30s, which could be a concern for those without power.
