100k in Southeast Michigan without power, DTE expects most restored by Sunday evening

SOUTHFIELD, Mich. (FOX 2) - Over 100,000 customers are still without power Sunday morning according to DTE's outage map. DTE says as of 7:30 a.m. their Storm Response team has restored power to more than 450,000 customers impacted by Wednesday's ice storm.

With more than 4,000 DTE line workers and out-of-state crews working on restorations, DTE says a majority of customers are expected to have power back by the end of the day.

"Our team will be working around the clock to restore power to both customers affected by the storm, and any additional customers who have had a power interruption since Wednesday. Field crews will also be focused on restoring power to the area’s K-12 schools today so that classes can resume in the morning," said DTE.

DTE continues to ask people to avoid downed power lines and to say indoors if possible:

• Stay at least one bus length (25 feet) away from downed lines. Don’t touch anything a fallen wire may be in contact with. Always consider a downed power line live and dangerous.
• Heed the warning of yellow caution tape, which indicates there is a downed power line in the area. DO NOT CROSS YELLOW CAUTION TAPE.
• Never use a portable generator inside a home or business. It emits carbon monoxide, which can be deadly. Keep it outside, away from windows and doors, so the fumes won’t come in.

DTE says the are is investing nearly $1 billion a year in electric infrastructure upgrades. More recently. DTE announced they are investing an additional $90 million in a more resilient power grid to combat extreme weather-related power outages.

The investment will not impact consumers' bills according to DTE.

How to check DTE's outage map

DTE is tracking the outages with its outage map that updates as power outages are reported. Find the DTE Energy map here.

DTE services much of Southeast Michigan and tracks outages based throughout the area. On the company's page, it will enclose businesses and residents in different shades. Purple indicates 99 or fewer customers without power, green is 100-500, yellow is 501-1,500, orange is 1,501 to 2,500, and red is 2,501 or more.

More: How to apply for reimbursement from DTE, Consumers Energy

On the outage map, you can search by address to see if there's an outage in your neighborhood. If you're experiencing an outage and it's not listed on DTE's site, you can report it by clicking ‘report outage’.

Also on DTE's map, you can report a downed power line, review the status of your outage, which includes when it will be estimated to be restored.