CenterPoint working to restore heat to homes in Buffalo
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(AP) CenterPoint Energy planned a big push on Friday to finish restoring natural gas service to this central Minnesota town, where residents spent a chilly night without their main source of heat.
As of 8 a.m. Friday, crews had restored service to about 3,200 of the 5,500 homes and businesses affected by the shutdown in the town of 15,000 people.
CenterPoint spokesman Rolf Lund said crews continued to make progress Friday and hoped to have gas fully restored by the end of Friday.
Lund said over 150 workers were restoring service that was shut off Thursday after a problem developed during maintenance. Work was progressing faster than officials had originally predicted.
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By Friday morning, all schools, hospitals and nursing homes had their service restored, CenterPoint said. Schools held classes as usual on Friday.
Lows overnight dipped into the mid-30s in Buffalo, but no one used the shelter that the American Red Cross staffed at the Buffalo Community Middle School.
Buffalo Police Chief Mitch Weinzetl said the temperature drops weren't dramatic enough to force people out of their homes. "Homes could lose about 20 degrees over the next 24 hours and still be habitable," he said on Thursday.
Al Frost had a Thursday afternoon lunch at BJ's Deli before heading home to his condo for the night. He wasn't too worried about the prospect of one night without heat.
"I'll throw extra blankets on the bed and crawl under the covers, the retired principal said. He also said he has an electric heater if he needs to use it.
Many residents said they were just glad that the gas was turned off on a day in fall instead of two or three months later.
"If we were dealing with wind chills and the ground was cold, that would be one thing," said Lee Ann Goerss, after she picked her 4th grade daughter, Madeline, up from school. "But it's October."
