DUNDEE, Ohio — Thousands of people are still without power in Michigan, almost 24 hours after an ice storm began bringing down trees and lines.
Representatives with DTE Energy, a Detroit-based electric services company, said it was the worst ice storm Michigan has seen in the last 50 years.
On Thursday, residents in Dundee, Michigan, were still picking up pieces of the debris from broken tree limbs. For some, things will get back to normal in the next few days. But for others, like Nicole Streeter, the damage is much more permanent.
The morning after the storm, Streeter was enjoying a cup of coffee when she was interrupted by a shocking disturbance.
"The whole house shuttered and a large branch came through the roof, through the kitchen and down into the kitchen, basically impaling our house," Streeter said.
The ice hanging from the tree in her backyard was so heavy, it sent branch after branch collapsing down, tearing down power lines with it.
"It was like a bomb going off, it was that loud," Streeter said.
Incidents like Streeter's occurred throughout Dundee and surrounding cities and villages.
Dundee Fire Department Assistant Chief Rob Justice said the department was flooded with so many emergency calls, the small station soon found itself overwhelmed.
"Obviously we didn't keep up, but no one kept up," Justice said. "Everyone last night was down four or five calls, all our neighbors and us, running call to call to call," said Justice.
Justice said while they blocked off what they could, there was little they can do for the downed power lines and various power outages across the village.
In a press conference, DTE president Trever Lauer said it's a problem residents across the entire state are currently facing, with about 485,000 outages and about 3,200 downed wires reported across Michigan from the storm.
Lauer said the company is responding to each issue in turn, but some residents might be in the dark for at least a couple of days.
"I would expect that we'll restore 100,000 or slightly more than 100,000 customers, and my expectation is by Sunday we'll have 95% of the customers back in power," Lauer said.
In the meantime, Lauer said residents need to steer clear of downed power lines "because you never know when they're going to come back to life."
DTE will begin power line repair with hospitals and medical systems, but Lauer warned that with high winds predicted on Thursday, DTE predicts the number of outages could climb before it begins to decline into the weekend.
Are school systems are providing assistance to residents affected by the storm, damages and power outages
Tecumseh Public Schools said in a Facebook post its high school will be open to community and family members Friday afternoon. Warmth and snacks will be provided at the high school, in northwest Tecumseh on Brown Street.
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