Tens of thousands still in the dark

LOS ANGELES

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The Los Angeles Department of Water & Power said that as of 9 p.m. Sunday, they had restored power to all their customers. More than 200,000 were left without power when the storm hit.

If you still do not have power but live in a block with neighbors who do have power, contact LADWP at 1 (800) DIAL-DWP or 1 (800) 342-5397 or text "off@ladwp" to 84469. Make sure to include your name, street address and neighborhood in the text message.

Meanwhile, Southern California Edison has a lot more work to do. As of Sunday night, SCE is still trying to restore power to 38,000 customers, most of them in the hard-hit San Gabriel Valley.

The utility expects to have service restored to all of its customers by 8 p.m. Monday.

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"We understand our customers are anxious to get their lights back on, and we're continuing to ask for their patience," SCE President Ron Litzinger said in a statement released Friday. "The massive winds that hit Wednesday evening have created some of the worst damage we've seen in a decade and resulted in some of the most complicated restoration efforts in years. Thousands of trees blew over, damaging thousands of overhead wires and poles."

Customers can call SCE customer service at (800) 655-4555.

SCE is offering help to families in need during the widespread outages.

Several distribution centers will be open Sunday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. to give out free basic supplies such as flashlights, water and ice.

Center locations:

Altadena
Community Center
730 East Altadena Dr.

Arcadia
Los Angeles County Regional Park
405 South Santa Anita Ave.
Arcadia, CA 91006

La Canada Flintridge
Community Park
1327 Foothill Blvd.
La Canada Flintridge, CA 91011

San Gabriel
Fire Station 51
1303 South Del Mar Ave.
San Gabriel, CA 91776

Sierra Madre
222 West Sierra Madre Blvd.
Sierra Madre, CA 91024

Temple City (2 locations)
City Hall
9701 Los Tunas Dr.
Temple City, CA 91780

Live Oak Park Community Center
10144 Bogue St.
Temple City, CA 91780

Patience is wearing thin for the thousands of people still trying to cope without electricity.

SCE crews are working around the clock to restore power to residents in places like Temple City, which is one of the hardest hit areas from the storm.

People without electricity say food is going bad in their refrigerators and the experience has not been easy.

"It's hard not to have TV or a phone, communication, Internet, computer, the whole thing," Arcadia resident Cindy Crippen said.

Some SCE customers say they've been told they may have to wait until as late as Thursday for power to be restored. Others have been told electricity will come back by Monday.

Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department deputies are closely monitoring which neighborhoods are in the dark and have stepped up patrols in those areas.

See safety tips to follow in case of a power outage.

That's a big relief to a lot of worried homeowners who fear this is the perfect opportunity for burglars.

"If you're going to leave your house and you have no power, lock everything. Lock your doors, your windows, make sure everything is secure, and just be mindful when you come home, if anything looks odd to you, call us," said Sgt. Debra Herman.

So far, deputies say they've not seen a rise in crime in neighborhoods without power.

In Arcadia, residents want answers on why power still hasn't been restored, but many say they've been getting the run around.

"We hear from Southern California Edison that they can't do the work until the city of Arcadia clears the debris, city of Arcadia says they can't clear the debris until Southern California Edison removes the wiring, so that means a no-win situation," said resident Helen Taylor. "It'll never get done."

Some folks have taken to clearing the road themselves, using it as firewood for heat. Having no power with cold temperatures has been a problem, especially for the elderly in the area.

"A lot of old people don't have any heat, a lot of them don't have telephones, they don't have any means to cook anything for themselves," Taylor said.

Some residents are wondering why crews cleared the roadway to a local golf course but has left their neighborhood streets obstructed.

Cleanup crews in Arcadia focused on the county park and the Santa Anita golf course, which was open for play Sunday.

Calls to the city regarding this were not returned.

The gusty winds and dry conditions were behind a red flag warning through 11 a.m. Sunday for parts of Los Angeles and Ventura counties. The Los Angeles County Fire Department placed about 200 extra firefighters on the job and positioned trucks in fire-prone areas due to the increased danger.

A wind advisory for the mountains and valleys was in effect through 2 p.m. Sunday.

See photos of wind damage across Southern California.

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