Some Power Restored in Ellington

As the aftermath of the October snowstorm lingers on, most people are still in the dark.

In some areas of Ellington, like near , power has been restored.

First Selectman Maurice Blanchette said that getting power to this area was a priority because of the food and gas opportunities along this stretch.

There are a few crews working in Ellington and Blanchette said that they are working to “get the most bang for their buck” in terms of getting people powered up.

There are no official predictions on when power will be restored completely, but CL&P is saying it could be a week – or longer.

Blanchette said that some power may have to be shut off temporarily while crews work on the lines.

He acknowledged that emotions are high on both sides of the power outage issue and that things aren’t getting done fast enough to make everyone happy.

“I’m working to keep it moving along,” Blanchette said.

Because of the darkness, it is not advised to go driving after dark if at all possible. With streetlights and stoplights being out, intersections become very dangerous. The downed trees and wires – as well as the construction on the bridge on Route 83 – also cause hazards that are hard to see in the dark.

On a positive note, some houses near Crystal Lake that have grinder pumps that are maintained by the town and are accessible will be hooked up to generators to move the sewage along into the main lines.

Water is also available at all of the Ellington schools from 7:30 a.m. until 3 p.m. Water is available at 24 hours a day.

At , the water is available at the gym entrance. At , water is available by the loading dock on the Windsorville Road side, near the cafeteria.

At , the water is available at the pre-school entrance side of the building, towards the town hall. At , water is available on the left side of the school towards the cafeteria. Also, Connecticut Water has established a filling station at the school.

The shelter at the high school is still running strong, with hundreds of people passing through to either stay, shower, charge phones, or eat. No one will be turned away, but people are encouraged to be at the shelter by 10 p.m.