HOLLAND (WHTC-AM/FM) — The high winds that started Wednesday night and continued into Thursday have led to closures.
Allendale Schools and Fruitport Schools — where winds tore a roof off a Edgewood Elementary — have cancelled classes, thanks to multiple power outages, and no power is the reason Ottawa County’s Fillmore Complex offices. Police and other emergency services are not affected, but the Sheriff’s office business lobby and window are closed, according to a notice by the county.
Holland BPW’s outage map reflected dozens of customers without power, and callers to WHTC indicated large trees had fallen in on Waukazoo Woods neighborhood, while a social-media post from a West Olive resident appealed for people in the area to look for a license plate that blew off a vehicle.
National Weather Service data showed wind gusts hitting 55 mph in during the early morning hours Thursday, Dec. 16, 2021.
Consumers Energy’s outage map showed more than 1,520 outages by 7:30 a.m.
Utility officials urge people to stay at least 25 feet away from any downed wire, whether or not it is sparking, and call 911 to report the incident.
Other Consumers Energy safety tips:
- Be alert to crews working along roads. Drivers should slow down or stop and wait for oncoming traffic to clear so they safely can go past workers on roadsides.
- Call 2-1-1 if you are looking for help connecting to resources that offer assistance in your community. 2-1-1 is a free statewide service.
- Never use a generator in an attached garage, basement, enclosed patio or near any air intakes. Doing so could cause a generator to produce hazardous levels of carbon monoxide, an odorless, colorless and deadly gas. Read more guidance on safe generator use here.
- Consumers Energy will trim or remove trees interfering with electric restoration activities. Once safe to do so, clean-up of debris from tree trimming or removal during a storm emergency is the responsibility of individual property owners.
- In some cases, the mast which holds the electric service wires to a customer’s home or business may have been damaged or torn away. Crews will reconnect the wires to a home, but only a licensed electrician can repair or replace a mast or a cable.
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