Some 1.2 million power outages persist in the United States in the aftermath of Hurricane Ida, which brought floods and other carnage to the US east coast after a weekend strike on the southeastern state of Louisiana, the US Energy Department said on Thursday
WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 02nd September, 2021) Some 1.2 million power outages persist in the United States in the aftermath of Hurricane Ida, which brought floods and other carnage to the US east coast after a weekend strike on the southeastern state of Louisiana, the US Energy Department said on Thursday.
"As of 7:00 a.m. EDT on September 2, there are approximately 1.2 million storm-related outages," the Energy Department said in an update. "Approximately 920,000 customer outages remain in Louisiana due to Ida, with an additional 230,000 outages in the Northeast after remnants of Ida passed over the region."
The Energy Department said the utilities have been conducting damage assessments and restoration efforts as much as the current conditions permit.
"Estimated restoration times will be established once damage assessments are complete," the Energy Department said, adding that most were expected to be completed later on Thursday.
Ida pummeled Louisiana as a Category 4 hurricane on Sunday before turning into a tropical storm. Prior to landfall, some 95 percent of the crude oil and natural gas production on the Gulf of Mexico had been shuttered as a precaution.
About 80 percent of those oil production facilities and 83 percent of the gas output fields remained shut as of 12:30 p.m. ET (16:30 GMT) on Wednesday, the Energy Department said.
Among oil refineries, seven remained closed in Louisiana, accounting for about 1.7 million barrels per day of refinery capacity, or approximately 9 percent of the total US operable refining capacity. While two in Louisiana's Baton Rouge area initiated restart on Monday, they were still operating below optimum levels.
"Damage assessments are underway, but operations cannot restart until feedstock supply, power, and other essential third-party utilities are restored," the Energy Department said.
