PROVIDENCE – Some Rhode Island Energy customers could be without power until Feb. 26 as the state endures a historic nor'easter that has left thousands in the dark on Monday.
Rhode Island Energy President Greg Cornett said Monday restoration crews are being held off broad repair work until conditions improve, citing hazardous wind gusts of up to 60–70 miles per hour seen along the state's coastline and on Block Island.
As of 4:30 p.m. there were about 42,000 Rhode Island Energy customers without power according to the company's power outage map. The highest amount is in the Cranston/Providence area with more than 15,000 customers without power and Narragansett/South County with more than 11,000. Newport had 2,800 outages while Portsmouth had about 2,400.
“As we are able to get out this afternoon and into the evening and start doing that damage restoration … our initial system-wide estimate may show three days or thereabouts,” Cornett said. “That doesn’t mean your individual power – it means the system as a whole. We’ll update the outage map with street- and circuit-level information as we go.”
Cornett said about 200 restoration crews are already working across Rhode Island, with additional teams from Pennsylvania expected to arrive Tuesday.
For now, crews are responding only to 911 emergencies while assessing storm damage, which has so far been largely vegetation-and infrastructure-related, including downed trees, poles and wires.
Cornett also highlighted that smart meters are helping the utility quickly identify outages, allowing crews to see which circuits are down and prioritize repairs.
Residents can track their outage status in real time via Rhode Island Energy’s online outage map and sign up for alerts for updates on estimated restoration times.
Gov. Daniel J. McKee, who joined Cornett at Monday’s briefing, said the state remains under a travel ban and emergency declaration.
He urged residents to stay off the roads, check on neighbors, and be prepared for extended outages.
McKee also noted that the Rhode Island National Guard is ready to assist where needed.
The nor’easter has brought heavy snow, near-blizzard conditions, and dangerous winds across southern New England, complicating both travel and restoration work.
Officials said the storm will bring heavy, wet snow, with totals expected between 24 and 36 inches across the region.
The combination of heavy, snow-laden power lines and wind gusts is expected to cause widespread outages.
Across nearby Bristol County, Mass., National Grid reported 2,000 outages, while Eversource had more than 14,000.
(UPDATE: Updated power outage numbers as of 4:30 p.m.)
Matthew McNulty is a PBN staff writer. He can be reached at McNulty@PBN.com or on X at @MattMcNultyNYC.
