Storm update: Monday, Dec. 26: The lights - and heat- are back on in many New Hampshire homes after Friday's winter storm knocked out power to tens of thousands.
As of Monday morning, fewer than 1,000 people are still without power, a drop from the more than 80,000 customers Friday night.
Crews from across the country have come to New England in an effort to help clean up the remnants of Friday's storm. Powerful winds and rain brought down trees and powerlines across the region, causing widespread outages that meant hardship for many over the weekend and Christmas Day.
It was the second weekend in a row for many Granite Staters without power after winter weather.
Sunday, Dec. 25: Utility crews continue to make progress on restoring power to thousands of Granite Staters.
As of 8 a.m. on Christmas Day, outages were down to about 17,000 statewide: 9,800 from Eversource, 6,300 from New Hampshire Electric Co-op, and 1,100 from Unitil.
Eversource reported that line crews had already restored power to nearly 300,000 — one indicator of the severity of this storm.
Today, these crews were dealing with extensive tree damage and broken poles on Auburn Rd in Hooksett. Replacing a pole can take ~6-12 hours, and typically requires a digger truck & several lineworkers. Across NH, we've been working to replace 96 broken poles from the storm. pic.twitter.com/hhlDGflDQQ
— Eversource NH (@EversourceNH) December 24, 2022
Parts of New Hampshire began Sunday with temperatures in the single digits. The forecast calls for a sunny day, with high temps reaching into the 20s.
Although power outages have been consistently dropping throughout the day Saturday, thousands of Granite Staters are still without power. If you lose power, you can take simple steps to remain safe. Learn more at https://t.co/0zoMGclN6k. #ReadyNH #BeSafe #BePrepared #NHwx pic.twitter.com/BWSvDVqHJI
— NH Homeland Security and Emergency Management (@NH_HSEM) December 25, 2022
Saturday, 9 a.m. Line crews are working to restore power to thousands of Granite Staters on Christmas eve.
There are nearly 80,000 customers without electricity as a result of high winds, according to New Hampshire Homeland Security and Emergency Management.
Are you without power? Some communities are opening up shelters for residents to warm up and recharge. If you need to find a warming shelter near you, call 2-1-1. #BeSafe #BePrepared #StayWarm #StaySafe #ReadyNH pic.twitter.com/dR9K3XhYQf
— NH Homeland Security and Emergency Management (@NH_HSEM) December 24, 2022
The National Weather Service warns of possible flood damage around some larger rivers, and low-lying areas, into Sunday.
Reporting outages
- Eversource: outage map. Text STAT to 23129 to get power alerts and restoration times
- N.H. Electric Co-op: outage map. Report an outage (800) 343-6432 or online
- Unitil: outage map. Report an outage (888) 301-7700 or online
- Liberty Utilities: outage map. Report an outage: (855)-349-9455
Our crews have been busy all day, restoring power to ~153K customers since the storm began. This afternoon’s wind gusts knocked out power to more customers (~82K currently out). We'll continue working around the clock until all of our customers have their power back. 📷: Hooksett pic.twitter.com/9c9rmQpRFR
— Eversource NH (@EversourceNH) December 24, 2022
Update: Friday, 11 a.m. The state emergency operations center has been partially activated in response to today's storm.
New Hampshire continues to be pelted by driving rain and high winds.
Coastal flooding has closed parts of Route 1A in Rye and in North Hampton.
There are more than 80,000 outages, as of 11 a.m. Dec. 23. Of those, 54,573 are Eversource customers, and 22,088 are New Hampshire Electric Co-op members. See below for outage maps and how to report outages.
Conditions on the roads right now are dangerous. Avoid travel if possible. It’s easy to underestimate the depth of floodwater. Don’t take the chance. Turn around, don’t drown. #ReadyNH #BeSafe pic.twitter.com/DZkz2Ib1of
— NH Homeland Security and Emergency Management (@NH_HSEM) December 23, 2022
Update on Friday, 9 am: New Hampshire utilities are now responding to more than 70,000 power outages across the state due to high winds and a wintry mix.
An earlier report runs below here:
A developing storm front is expected to bring high winds and flooding to areas of New Hampshire on Friday, and there is a chance of widespread power outages.
The National Weather Service issued hazardous weather alerts, beginning Friday morning, including the potential for slick, nasty driving conditions statewide.
With 1 to 3 inches of rainfall in the forecast, combined with snow melt, the flood watch takes effect at 7 a.m. Dec. 23, and continues through 7 a.m. Dec. 24.
The high wind watch is effective at 7 a.m. Dec. 23. Meteorologists predict steady winds of 20 to 30 mph, with gusts up to 55 mph possible.
Utility crews have been preparing for the worst with this storm, assembling crews to respond to downed power lines.
Ski resorts that welcomed more than a foot of snow in last week's storm are bracing for a hazardous, wet and rainy day. Waterville Valley Resort announced it would close on Friday in order to best preserve snow on its slopes for the holiday week of skiing and snowboarding.
Even though tomorrow's storm will mainly be a rain event, frigid arctic air will quickly move in. Flash freezes, extremely cold wind chills and temperatures are expected after the storm. #NHwx #MEwx pic.twitter.com/NvqNIYBtRN
— NWS Gray (@NWSGray) December 22, 2022
