No Electricity for 200 Customers; Are You Surviving Being Powerless?

More than 24 hours after a powerful thunderstorm roared through the south suburbs, about 200 Oak Forest ComEd customers are still without electricity.

As of the morning of Wednesday, June 26, the highest concentration of residents waiting for their power to be restored is in the Forestview Hills subdivision, with 145 customers affected, according to ComEd's online power outage map. In fact, this area has been without power since right after the brief but severe thunderstorm left its mark on the city. (The areas marked in red on the map show where the areas with most affected customers in Oak Forest and Tinley Park.)

According to ComEd's Twitter feed, power has been restored to 95 percent of the utility's coverage area as of 4 a.m.

READ: Lights Out? Not for These Fans Who Cheered for the Blackhawks Even With the Power Out

High winds from Monday's storm were the major cause of the power outages, which left around 63,000 ComEd customers without power throughout the state as of 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, said Ashley Dennison, a spokeswoman for the utility. In some areas, gusts reached as high as 75 mph, she added.

ComEd had as many as 535 workers in crews throughout its service area Tuesday afternoon and evening, Dennison said. The additional crews were deployed to continue taking care of Monday's storm damage, as well as prepare for the possibility of more bad weather Tuesday, which could have led to additional outages, she said.  

Although Dennison said she couldn't confirm when all power would be restored, ComEd's outage map estimated that most areas would have their electricity back by around 11 p.m. Wednesday, June 26. A few small patches near Cicero Avenue had estimates for around noon Thursday, June 27.

While the power outage had some residents creating a memorable Chicago Blackhawks experience with their neighbors, others have seen this time without electricity take its toll. A commenter who lives near 151st Street and Menard Avenue—part of the area in Oak Forest that has been continuously without power since the storm hit—said she had to throw out her refrigerated food because it went bad.

YOUR TURN: Have you been without power for long stretches since Monday? How have you coped? Did you check in to a nearby hotel? Or did you tough it out? How did you stay cool? And what about your food? Tell us how you've survived these power outages and pass along tips to other residents in similar situations in the comments section.