FARMINGTON, Mich. (WXYZ) — As another round of storms approaches the area, Farmington residents are bracing for more power outages — and some are asking what can proactively be done to prevent the kind of widespread outages seen just last week.
Watch Ruta Ulciniate's video report:
Farmington Mayor Joe LaRussa says power outages in the city are nothing new, although there have been signs of progress. He says Farmington circuits have seen a 65% reduction in outage frequency and an 85% reduction in outage duration for impacted residents, up until this latest storm.
However, as an engineer himself, he has presented ideas directly to DTE and the Michigan Public Service Commission about how they can work together to find long-term solutions.
"The council got together and said we really need to communicate with the state regulators and we need to do it in a constructive way," LaRussa said. "It was important for the whole city to say to our state regulators, these are some things that can be done to make this better."
LaRussa sent a letter — also signed by city council — to both DTE and the Michigan Public Service Commission in 2022 after a massive storm caused widespread power outages. The letter laid out ways all parties could work together to prevent outages before they happen.
Resident Jules Carvey described the uncertainty many in the city feel.
"It's kind of a coin flip where it's like are we gonna lose power or are we not going to lose power?" Carvey said.
One idea LaRussa proposed a few years ago involved burying power lines when a housing development was being built in the city and the road needed to be redone. He says DTE agreed to do the project since the road was already open — but at a cost.
"The first ask was a million dollars to underground probably 380 feet of utility line," LaRussa said.
Watch previous coverage this week when nearly 400,000 were without power after storms:
Under Michigan Code R 460.517, electric facilities are only required to pay for underground lines for the company's own convenience and benefit, or where required in heavily congested business districts. LaRussa believes that should change.
"I do think that there is a need for administrative review for existing rules and really giving local communities a little bit more of a seat at the table," LaRussa said.
September 2023 video report: Burying power lines: DTE testing out pilot program in some neighborhoods to help reduce outages
7 News Detroit reached out to DTE for an interview but was denied as crews prepared for the next round of storms.
Meanwhile, the Michigan Public Service Commission told 7 News Detroit it has taken steps to explore moving overhead power lines underground, including launching pilot programs in places like Ann Arbor. In a statement, the MPSC said:
“We share in the frustration customers have about power outages, and we recognize there’s more work to be done. We are focused relentlessly on improving reliability.”
For resident Isabelle Ban, who lost power from Friday to Wednesday and lost hundreds of dollars worth of food, the pace of change is not fast enough.
"I would understand it's expensive but even starting slow by slow. Sometimes, that's what you gotta do," Ban said. "I'm even looking at all these wires in front of my house and it's just ridiculous."
Carvey echoed the urgency felt by many in the community.
"I think something needs to be happening," Carvey said.
____________________
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
