FREEPORT

Central Maine Power Company estimates it has restored power to more than 80 percent of the customers who lost service after a wind and rain storm tore through the state earlier this week. By 10 p.m. Thursday, outages had dropped to an estimated 80,000 customer accounts from a peak of 404,000 at midday Monday, according to a company press release.

Meanwhile, as half of Freeport remains without power, the town manager and councilors offered information on where to get water, food and stay warm following the storm.

Town Manager Peter Joseph said Thursday that nearly 4,700 households in Freeport still do not have power restored. He said public works crews will be working overtime in the coming days, clearing debris from roadways.

“It may take longer in some neighborhoods,” he said of the estimates power may be restored by Saturday.

Joseph, Fire Chief Charlie Jordan and House Speaker Sara Gideon, D-Freeport, toured the damage in town. The town manager thanked Gideon for the time she took to survey the impact on Freeport as well as calling Central Maine Power on their behalf about infrastructure problems, including trees resting on lines, and a downed line across the library, which remains closed.

Gideon, on her website, wrote: “They made sure that I saw every part of town and the outstanding damage. The good news is that by the time we were rounding up our drives through town, three utility line crew trucks had arrived on Wolfe’s Neck Road with word that they would be staying until their jobs were done.”

Resources available to the community include food assistance and a warming station at Freeport Community Services, which is open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Joseph said there has not been a high demand for the warming station, but said it will remain open through the weekend.

Showers are available at the Caso Bay YMCA and water is available at the town’s public safety building, Joseph said.

The town manager urged people to be cautious, adding that although some downed lines may not seem live, they may still have some voltage traveling through them, and cannot be properly dismantled until CMP is available to do the work.

Vice Chairwoman Melanie Sachs, a social worker, added that people who receive assistance through the supplemental nutritional assistance program, or SNAP, can call the Department of Health and Human Services to receive information and an application for the replacement of food lost during the power outage. Sachs said she could be of assistance in filling out the application, or said guidance can also be found at Freeport Community Services.

“Town staff has been working long hours to get our feet under us. The magnitude of the storm caught us by surprise. It’s been a difficult few days, but hopefully it will be resolved by Saturday,” Council Chairwoman Sarah Tracy said.

CMP President and CEO Sara Burns said the company hopes to get power back to the majority of its customers by Saturday evening.

CMP started Thursday with a storm recovery workforce of 2,300 people, added 400 more over the course of the day, and is expected to add more today.

The company states it will work around the clock to continue to bring more customers on line. The only exceptions could be homes on remote camp lines and in areas where flooding or downed trees prevent access.

CMP continues to update restoration estimates by town and road on the Outage Central section of its website. Customers are encouraged to check back often, as the list is being updated frequently.

Additional information on storm safety and restoration can be found at cmpco.com.

DARCIE MOORE contributed to this report.

jlaaka@timesrecord.com

Freeport vessel vote

• BY A 6-1 VOTE Thursday, the Freeport Town Council voted not to issue an overweight moving permit for the 80-ton Island Rover vessel, which remains unwelcome by the Bucknam Road neighborhood. See story, page A3.

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