Friday, November 16, 2012
Lessons from Sandy: What if cell service went down?
BayComm, a volunteer disaster-preparedness CB radio group began by Jim Kettren of Bay Village this year, is welcoming members from Lakewood. The invitation is timely, considering the number affected after SuperStorm Sandy came through Northeast Ohio — and in Lakewood, leaving 15,000 without power. While certain things were still available, such as cell phones, gasoline and natural stoves, fireplaces, and gas water heaters, Kettren wonders what would happen if there was no cell phone service. “There are several things that can knock out the communications grid, and this is what BayComm plans for,” he said. “The CB radio (handheld, mobile, and base) can become your lifeline to reach out to others, providing vital information, assistance and …
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
FirstEnergy officials say that the company outage map on Monday — reporting that more than 1,000 were still without power — was a glitch.
Only a handful of Lakewood residents are still without power. FirstEnergy officials confirmed that Tuesday morning. A computer glitch was to blame for the outage map that reported that more than 1,000 customers were still in the dark on Monday night, said Mark Durbin, a spokesman for FirstEnergy. There are an estimated 25 customers still without power, but Durbin said those outages are not likely related to last week’s Superstorm Sandy. “We completed out storm restoration (Monday),” he said. “Any outages that pop up are not from the storm — we’re trying to make sure that we scrub out those false numbers.” “From now on any new outages are new outages,” Durbin added. “For example, if a truck hits pole and takes out some customers or if a …
FirstEnergy reported last week that all the power would be back on Monday by 11:59 p.m., however it didn’t happen.
Update: Most all of the outages because of the storm have been fixed, said Mark Durbin, of FirstEnergy, on Tuesday morning. For the update, click here. The number of reported outages in Lakewood started out at around 75 on Monday morning. Then it dropped to 46 later in the afternoon. But by the day’s end, more than a 1,000 people were back in the dark — the highest number of reported outages in Northeast Ohio. That’s after FirstEnergy set a deadline of 11:59 p.m. Monday night to have all the power restored in the city following last week’s Superstorm Sandy. Calls to FirstEnergy were not immediately returned Monday night. However, officials suspect that the power was knocked out again while crews make “more permanent” repairs. “Don’t worry…
Saturday, November 3, 2012
Residents still without power growing “frustrated and angry.” In other news, St. Edward's playoff game is moved to Parma because of electrical issues at Lakewood Stadium.
On the fifth day of power outages in Lakewood, those still in the dark following Monday’s “superstorm” are growing “frustrated and angry.” Mayor Michael Summers, who’s been fielding many of those phone calls from residents who are still without power, says he understands their concerns. “This takes time,” he said. “It’s very slow process.” Thousands have regained their power since crews aggressively began repairing the downed lines on Wednesday. However, on Friday night, 3,670 residents were still in the dark, according to the FirstEnergy outage map. “People who don’t have power now are very frustrated and very angry,” Summers said. “And I understand that. There’s some complicated reason — probably some kind of backyard problem, like a …
Friends of the Lakewood Dog Park is hosting a fundraiser, Santa Paws photo event, to benefit the non-profit dog rescue organization on Sunday at Pet’s General Store.
- VOLUNTEERS IN THE NEWS
- Colin McEwen
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Saturday, November 3, 2012
In addition to a few thousand Lakewood residents, about 20 rescued dogs at All Dogs Heaven are waiting for the power outage to end. But right now, the dogs’ keeper Missy Limkemann said she’s just hoping to keep them all alive. The non-profit animal rescue on Waterbury Avenue has been without power since early Tuesday morning. All 20 dogs at the rescue have special needs. Two of them have three legs. One is undergoing heart-worm treatment and two came to the shelter starving to death. But, they are in danger again. The power is out, which means the heat is out. If Limkemann can’t find a generator — or if the power doesn’t return soon — she’ll need to move the dogs into other homes. To make matters worse, a 70-foot oak tree fell on the …
Friday, November 2, 2012
Power is still out for thousands in Lakewood, however crews are working “around the clock.”
County executive Ed FitzGerald stood at a makeshift podium Friday at the corner of Lake Road and Cove Avenue in front of more than a half-dozen TV cameras to reassure county residents that the relief and cleanup effort is well under way. FitzGerald, the former mayor of Lakewood, was flanked by current Lakewood Mayor Michael Summers and Cuyahoga County Sheriff Bob Reid as well as other county officials. “This is the first major weather incident that the new county government has really tried to deal with,” said FitzGerald, who is also a Lakewood resident. Just steps away from the press conference were several energy company employees working to repair the wreckage from Superstorm Sandy. Just hours before, Lake Road had reopened after five …
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Lake Ave & Cove Ave, Lakewood, OH
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The lights came back on for about 4,000 Lakewood residents on Thursday. The rest are still waiting.
The power came back on for 4,000 Lakewood residents on Thursday. However, there are still nearly 10,000 residents in the dark. And, in Lakewood, they may be waiting a few more days — some until Monday night, according to the FirstEnergy website. There were 9,459 residents without power on Thursday night, according to an outage map. That’s down from more than 13,000 the night before. “We started gaining ground on Wednesday,” said Mayor Michael Summers, who spent much of the week stopping at the scenes of outages. “The biggest gains are the infrastructure repair.” The only road that remained closed was Lake Road, between Cove and Nicholson avenues, where electric company crews set up a long row of elevated lifts to repair downed lines. …
Thursday, November 1, 2012
Power restored to all of Lakewood’s schools.
After three days without classes, school is set to resume for students in the Lakewood City Schools. Power was restored to all of the district’s buildings on Thursday afternoon. Classes were canceled Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. “We just need to get these kids back in school,” said Christine Gordillo, spokeswoman for the Lakewood City Schools. “Kids, on our district’s Facebook page, are complaining,” “but I think they’ll thank us later, when they don’t have to come back in the summer.” The power was knocked out at Hayes, Emerson and Grant elementary schools, as well as Harding Middle School. But all schools were back on by 5 p.m. Thursday. The district’s threshold for calamity days is five. That means that after five calamity days, …
FirstEnergy: Power may be out through Sunday.
Following this week’s Superstorm Sandy, thousands of Lakewood residents are still without power. FirstEnergy’s online outage map reported that 12,987 residents were still in the dark on Wednesday night. Many of those residents could be waiting a few days. FirstEnergy representative Mark Durbin said that power may not be restored until this weekend. “That’s our goal,” he said. “There may still be an isolated case or two that is longer. “We don’t want to be locked into a timeframe.” As the power remains out for thousands in Lakewood — as well as neighboring communities — the county and the American Red Cross opened a 24-hour emergency shelter at Garfield Middle School. Dozens of Lakewood residents showed up on Wednesday night — as did Gov. …
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
County partners with American Red Cross to open several 24-hour shelters in the area.
As the power remains out for thousands in Lakewood — as well as neighboring communities — the county has opened a 24-hour emergency shelter at Garfield Middle School. With assistance from the American Red Cross, the shelter will serve as a place for residents without power to eat, sleep and take a hot shower. “It’s a safe warm place for people to come,” said Christine Gordillo, the spokeswoman for the Lakewood City Schools. The shelter opened at 1 p.m. Wednesday and is expected to remain open “until there’s no longer a need for it,” Gordillo said. Cots are set up in the gymnasium, and the shower facilities are available for residents. TVs on the wall provide some entertainment. Dennis Pell, the shelter manager for the American Red Cross…
Gina J.
6:56 am on Friday, November 16, 2012
I don't know about anyone else but I live in Lakewood and the night of the storm I DID loose cell service/Verizon and my police scanner went quiet as police scrambled for viable channels. more ›