Business & Tech

UPDATED: 8 p.m. Power Returning to Middletown

Life marches toward normal as CL&P begins restoring electricity downtown.

Update: 8 p.m. Tuesday

Middlesex Community College will be closed Wednesday due to a power outage.

Grand Street west of High Street remains without power Tuesday night as does Pearl Street south of Liberty.

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53 percent of CL&P customers without power: 12,094 in total in Middletown.

Earlier version:

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There are a whole lot of happy people in BrewBakers Tuesday morning.

With most of downtown Middletown's electricity restored — Main and Washington streets, all of the North End — life began Tuesday morning inching toward normal. Overnight, CL&P customers without power dropped from 94 percent to 63, then popped up to 70 percent (15,919 households) by midmorning.

By noon, the 53 percent remained without power. At 3:30 p.m., 14,143 or 62 percent of customers were out. Statewide, the numbers are 653,681 total households in the dark or 52 percent.

Wesleyan University has its generators working for most of the campus, although its wood-frame apartments and Athletic Center are dark.

Middletown Public Schools are closed Wednesday and there's some question if they'll reopen Thursday. The city public works will be picking up brush for free curbside in November.

Walgreens and CVS on Main Street Extension were open for customers, but cash-only and employees were all bundled up against the cold since the heat was out.

Throughout Tuesday, Middletown Patch readers let us know

  • No power on Boston Road
  • The Community Health Center has power and is open and seeing patients
  • Power on Atkins Street
  • At about 11:40 a.m., power was restored at the Westlake-area condos
  • Fusion Bakery and Main Street Market was back up and running today.
  • Baldwin drive is still out
  • Northern High Street has it, Park Place (one block west) does not.
  • Miner Street restored at 11:46 a.m.
  • No power on Grand Street from High Street toward Prospect

Comcast Cable trucks were seen on Pearl Street at Grand at 3 p.m. restoring cable television and internet with a generator.

Much of Wesleyan University is powered up by generators, however electricity at off-campus, wood-frame houses and the athletic center is down. Classes begin again tomorrow. Alternative sleeping arrangements are offered for students without power, according to the university.

Russell Library is still closed, however many Main Street businesses like Javapalooza, Klekolo World Coffee, Amato's Toy Shop (closing at 4 p.m. today), Webster Bank and others are open.

The Middlesex YMCA is offering everyone a hot shower for a $1 donation. All classes and facilities are open as usual; however the small pool isn't because the water needs to be heated. The day care and child watch programs are not in service.

Middlesex Superior Court is closed. 

A few traffic lights remain off, like at the Route 9 North exit at Washington Street, but overall, city businesses started serving customers, like BrewBakers, where a hot spinach and ricotta wrap has never tasted so good. Customers chatted amicably about whether their homes had power — and how they managed two days in the dark.

One thing — they're out of plain bagels.

United Way 2-1-1 is continually updating the list of shelters and other essential resources available to state residents affected by Winter Storm Alfred. 2-1-1 has up-to-date listings of open shelters, warming stations, gas stations, drug stores, school closings and more. For information, see www.211ct.org.

Middletown High School remains open for hot showers, food and charging stations; and Town Hall is offering charging of electronics.

Middletown Patch will be updating the restoration of power throughout the day. Check back for updates.


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