Powerless: Read, Tell Sandy Stories

Lower Merion Township's last report on Thursday had about 2,600 buildings still without electricity from Hurricane Sandy's destruction earlier in the week. That amounts to more than 10 percent of the township.

Since the storm hit, Patch readers who've lost power have conveyed their experiences in comments on articles and emails to editors. Read theirs here, and add yours in the comments section.

Jamie Moss, Penn Valley resident and Prudential Realtor with clients throughout the Main Line, sent this to Patch about 12:45 Thursday:

My week without power has been extremely challenging due to the fact I have an elderly dog. Monday all was fine, we heard the wind and watched the rain. Monday about 2 a.m. the power went out. Now being a nervous single woman living alone who sometimes freaks at these things, I was prepared with 4 lanterns and 4 flashlights and candles. I have only lost power once before for about 24 hours..so I figured this was the same. I called PECO and did not get any type of estimated time on Tuesday. I went about my business at home, the house started to get colder. My internet addiction totally came to the surface as I scrambled to keep my laptop, iPad and iPhone charged. Luckily I have family in the neighborhood so I could shower and hang out and have a meal. Sleeping has been very challenging, no matter how many blankets my body doesn't seem to relax when I know something is wrong.

Driving in and out of streets has been a nightmare too, downed trees and wires makes navigating difficult.

I checked PECO's website and it has said the same thing: 11 p.m. on Friday. When I called (Thursday) a nice man told me the same thing. I did just start seeing more trucks yesterday and as I drive up my street I always hope i'll see a light. I feel badly for my dog, I even sent her to the vet yesterday for the day. She is diabetic and 90% blind so I can't just take her anywhere. I did call the Marriott Residence Inn and they will take dogs but for $325. A little too steep. So I have also spent a lot of time at my office where it's warm and I can be with my friends.. and I even sold a condo!

Hopefully this will all be over and we will be on to the holidays!

(Note: Jamie had her power restored a few hours later, mid-Thursday afternoon.)

We also heard from Lisa Dobbin Prosnitz, another Penn Valley resident, about 1 p.m. Thursday:

Lost power for a bit on Sunday but they restored it that afternoon. Lost again Monday morning at the start of the storm. Don't know why it went out. Lots of downed wires.

Using PECO website for info. Their times keep changing from 11 p.m. Nov. 1 to Nov. 2 at 11 p.m. and I just looked now and it says 4 p.m. today! Let's hope.

Lights flickered on in the middle of the night last night but they didn't stay. I know PECO is working hard. Lots of my friends have had power restored. Just patiently waiting!

It's definitely not fun—house is cold. My daughter now has a nasty cold. We spent one night at a cousin's house, but that wasn't easy either. Just threw away about $1,000 worth of groceries in the fridge and my two freezers. Left cookies for the refuse team since there were so many bags!

No power is a hardship, but I am grateful that the four huge trees surrounding my house didn't fall and that we only lost one small tree in front. Thankful we have a home and wonderful friends and family who have been so generous. If power doesn't come on at 4 p.m. today, will possibly go to a hotel.

Knowing that the power will come back on helps too. We could have had it a lot worse.

All this has likely encouraged me to shell out money for a generator. At least for our sump pump, fridge, freezer and heat/AC!

(Note: Lisa's power came back on Thursday evening.)

A Bryn Mawr resident who did not want to be named gave the following account about 1:30 p.m. Thursday:

Power out around 9 on Monday night. If I call PECO and put in my #, I get a generic message. If I log on to their website, it says 11 p.m. on Friday. Right now, my dogs are at my parents' house. I don't want to advertise that we are not at home, but ... We stayed at home until last night when we stayed at a hotel. We have been lucky to have many kind friends offer us beds and showers! I am at a friend's house now letting the kids play and recharging devices. I will have to go home this afternoon to empty the contents of my fridge and freezer before trash pickup on Friday.

About 8:30 a.m. Thursday, Patch commenter Barbara Shaw checked in:

Country Lane in Narberth is still without power. Getting cold inside.

Another commenter using the handle "R Shade" added about 12:30 p.m. Thursday:

River Road is still without power.

About 2:50 p.m. Thursday, a commenter going by "L Davis" reported on another neighborhood:

Houses on portions of Greythorne, Knox and Argyle Rds in Wynnewood are still without power. PECO website is showing Nov. 3rd (11pm) as the date for restoring power for this area. (Yesterday they were forecasting Nov. 2nd.) Too cold and dark for another night. Have moved to hotel.

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What power problems have you experienced because of Hurricane Sandy? How have your dealings with PECO been? What have you been doing to cope with the outage? Tell us in the comments section below.