Updated
Updated · WLS-TV · Aug 22
ComEd Sends 60 Workers to NIPSCO Outages as Bears Donate $200,000 in Northwest Indiana
Updated
Updated · WLS-TV · Aug 22

ComEd Sends 60 Workers to NIPSCO Outages as Bears Donate $200,000 in Northwest Indiana

1 articles · Updated · WLS-TV · Aug 22

Summary

  • More than 60 ComEd employees arrived Saturday to help NIPSCO restore power in northwest Indiana, where over 30,000 customers were still without electricity nearly two weeks after Aug. 11 storms.
  • The Chicago Bears separately pledged $200,000 for storm relief, splitting $100,000 each between Catholic Charities in Chicago and Gary as churches and aid groups kept distributing meals and supplies.
  • Gary and Portage remain among the hardest-hit areas, with residents reporting ruined homes, dead livestock and mounting hotel costs while some line workers clear debris and downed lines.
  • Indiana Governor Mike Braun is seeking a federal major disaster declaration after estimated property damage topped $5 billion, while a class-action lawsuit accuses NIPSCO of poor vegetation management.
  • NIPSCO denied the lawsuit's claims, said vegetation-management spending has more than doubled since 2016, and suspended customer disconnections through next week as restoration continues.

Insights

With a $5 billion disaster looming, will a lawsuit expose the real reason 30,000 Indiana residents spent weeks in the dark?
As the Chicago Bears pour $200,000 into relief, why are vulnerable families still waiting for basic electricity weeks later?