About 1,346 Avon CL&P Customers Lose Power

As winds from Hurricane Sandy intensify, possibly reaching up to 90 miles per hour, about 1,346 Connecticut Light & Power customers in Avon have lost power, according to the power company's outage map, as of 5:20 p.m.

That is about 15 percent of the 8,692 customers CL&P serves in town.

Minutes before 5 p.m., at least 560 of the outages were due to a circuit problem on East Main Street (Route 44), Avon Assistant Town Manager Steve Bartha said around 5 p.m. There were 177 more customers without power in the Old Farms Road area and some more on Huckleberry Hill Road around then.

There were also issues with a fuse and transformer by Old Farms Road earlier Monday.

The town has not received reports on how many businesses were affected.

"We have not had a lot of phone activity," Bartha said.

Arch Road should reopen soon as CL&P crews repair downed lines, he said. There were also downed wires on Grant Drive and Old Farms Road earlier, he said.

A CL&P line truck and workers stayed the night in Avon, which is something the town didn't have during the October storm, Bartha said. Five public works trucks staffed by 10 employees and two mechanics were on standby overnight. There will likely be four employees manning two Public Works trucks tonight.

Police officers have been working 12-hour shifts instead of the usual eight so that there are more people on per shift if needed. If wind speeds become too high, the police and fire departments will assess whether its safe for emergency personnel to be on the roads.

Flooding hasn't been an issue so far, he said, with little rain. Winds are picking up and expected to reach a high point around 9 p.m., Bartha said.

"Stay inside," he said. "Use good judgement."

Since Town Hall is closed, people can call police dispatch at 860-409-4200 with questions or if they need the police to give them rides to the emergency shelter. If the governor orders non-essential employees to stay home from work, town offices may be closed again on Tuesday.

There are only about five people at the town's emergency shelter at Avon High School, including an elderly couple and a young couple with a baby, Bartha said.

If you lose power, report it to CL&P at 1-800-286-2000.

How are you faring so far? Are you braving the storm at home or at the emergency shelter? What streets don't have power? Where are there downed wires or trees? Tell us in the comments. You can also ask any questions you have there and we'll do our best to get answers.

More information will be provided as it becomes available and you can find regular updates on the storm by clicking on our Hurricane Sandy Avon Info Center article.