Indiana’s governor demands probe of power utility during tour of storm-ravaged Gary

Brenda Medema grabbed lunch Monday afternoon at the American Red Cross Shelter inside the Hudson Campbell Sports and Fitness Center in downtown Gary.

The shelter became her home soon after a storm ripped through Northwest Indiana on Aug. 11.

“It’s been really tough,” said Medema, 57. “I was getting heatstroke. I’ve been living in the shelter but the Red Cross makes it worth it.”

Thousands lost power for days following the storm. While most have had it restored, dozens remained without power.

At the shelter, Indiana Gov. Mike Braun continued calls for a probe of the area’s utility company after he made his tour of Gary. He also visited the area the day after the storm.

“We’ve never had this kind of an event in 100 years,” Braun said.

Braun said a state agency will look into the local power utility, Northern Indiana Public Service Company on its preventative measures prior to the storm hitting.

“There will be an investigation to see if they (NIPSCO) were doing what they were supposed to do to keep things in good shape, to be preventive,” Braun said.

Many Northwest Indiana residents have been critical of NIPSCO’s slow restoration efforts while charging the highest electricity rates in the state, according to records from the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission.

It’s the IURC that will conduct the investigation into NIPSCO, according to Braun, who is responsible for appointing members to the commission.

“It will now be balanced between a ratepayer’s point of view and what the utilities want because we need dependable, reliable electricity, but we need to have somebody speaking up for the ratepayer,” Braun said. “We’re also the fastest growing state in the Midwest, and that means you’re going to have to have reliable utilities to make sure you can accommodate it.”

Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times

Gary Mayor Eddie Melton supports an investigation into his former employer, NIPSCO.

“That’s something that I joined the governor in urging NIPSCO and having that investigation to figure out what went wrong, what was the process, and how that process should be improved,” Melton said. “I think it’s extremely important that we look for reliability in our energy sources, and I think it’s important that we go through that process in a very intentional way.”

In a statement, NIPSCO said the storms that caused extraordinary damage across northern Indiana were unprecedented.

“NIPSCO mobilized thousands of resources from 14 states in response and will participate in any and all government inquiries stemming from the event,” NIPSCO said in the statement. “NIPSCO’s focus continues to be on ensuring all customers impacted by the storm are restored safely and reliably.”

The Federal Emergency Management Agency has set up several locations in Northwest Indiana to assist residents with filing paperwork to receive financial assistance to help repair damaged homes.

Some homeowners have damaged weatherheads on their homes, which is preventing power being restored. Those weatherheads must be replaced before NIPSCO will restore power. But repair work comes at the expense of the homeowner and can cost thousands to repair.

Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times

Braun on Bears:

Meanwhiile, Braun said he doesn’t believe the storm and power restoration efforts are going to keep the Bears from deciding to move across the stateline to Hammond, Indiana.

“I think the Bears are going to think when you’re moving at the speed of business to address a crisis like this, thank goodness you’re going to be in Indiana. Hopefully, not in a place that’s slower footed (like Illinois),” Braun said.