PETOSKEY — Petoskey is just one of the many areas that were hammered by the ice storm, bringing devastation to many people living there have never experienced before. People in Petoskey are still without power and are waiting for it to be restored. Many are gathering at warming centers to grab a bite to eat or charge their device.
Going through Petoskey, you will see fallen branches from trees that are covered in ice, and have fallen due to the weight of that ice. You will also see road crews on the side of the roads working as fast as they can to make the sidewalks and roads clear, as fast as they can.
“Last night, a friend knocked on our door. We lived directly across the street from city hall,” Petoskey resident Nan Elizabeth Casey said. “Boy, it was hard just to walk across the street to get here. I mean, the wind. It was that fierce.”
Most of the roads in Petoskey are clear, but power crews are still out restoring electricity to thousands of customers. Petoskey has around 16,000 people without power and City Manager Shane Horn says it could take a few days to bring it back completely.
“This is been one of those storms where it’s been all hands-on deck,” Horn said. “So, our crews have been out, you know, 24 over seven, trying to clear roadways of debris, get electrical lines connected, get our substations powered back up. So, it’s been city crews have been busy. We’ve had a lot of local contractors who have assisted us as well. We’ve had out-of-state crews that have been here and some more that are coming this way to assist us. This is going to be a massive cleanup effort for us once we’re done and once we have power restored.”
Petoskey City Hall has opened its doors for community members to stay warm and charge their devices. They are planning to stay open 24/7 until the power is back on.
Casey said she has never experienced something like this.
“When I grew up,” she said. “We had so much snow. It was up on our rooftop. We had a flat rooftop. We were up on Morgan Street, but that’s what we were used to. In the last few years, there hasn’t been as much snow. But in my family, obviously stayed up here, and we never had anything like this.”
Governor Gretchen Whitmer declared a State of Emergency for Emmet County, that is bringing in resources like fuel to prevent crew from coming and going. This could slow down the power from being turned back on.
Horn said the crews are facing many obstacles in the field.
“We’ve got a lot of guys really, really working around the clock to make this happen. It’s just they’re trying to work in elements that are very challenging, working in freezing rain and drizzle and sleet. And it’s made for a very challenging restoration process.“