National Grid: No Restoration Time Estimate Yet

In the thousands in North Andover are still without power, and National Grid crews are out in full force trying to restore it. But there is still no time estimate of when power will be restored.

"This storm has impacted over 400,000 of our Massachusetts customers," said Kathy Lyford, vice president of operations for president of National Grid in New England. "This was a record-breaking October storm, by far the worst October storm we’ve had in New England."

There are thousands of tree limbs down across the state, she added, causing an unusually large number of power outages.

"We serve 172 communities, from an electric perspective, from the Merrimack Valley to Rhode Island and out to western New York," Lyford said. "Virtually every area was hit by the storm."

Lyford said the company is in "full restoration mode," and National Grid in New England has called for assistance by crews from as far away as Michigan, Ohio and North Carolina.

Lyford said the company hopes to have time estimates later today or tomorrow, as they assess damage throughout today to get a clearer picture of what they're facing and what to expect. In the meantime, they are working with local and state emergency management agencies as well as Gov. Deval Patrick's office to speed the process up.

“I want to thank our customers for their patience as we work to restore their power as quickly as possible," Lyford said.

As of Sunday afternoon, nearly 4,000 homes in North Andover were without power.

The largest area in North Andover without power is around Massachusetts Avenue -- stretching from Waverly Road to Dale Street and from Lake Cochichewick all the way to Route 114. Another large area without power is around Lake Cochichewick along Great Pond Road into Boxford.

Check back with Patch for further updates.