Millions still without electricity

WASHINGTON (AP):

Utility crews struggled to catch up with a backlog of millions of people without electricity for a fourth hot day yesterday, as frustration grew and authorities feared the toll of 23 storm deaths could rise because of stifling conditions and generator fumes.

Power was back for more than a million customers but lights and air conditioning, were still out for about 1.4 million homes and businesses in seven states and the District of Columbia. The damage was done by powerful wind storms that swept from the Midwest to the Mid-Atlantic late Friday, toppling trees and branches into power lines and knocking out big transmission towers and electrical substations.

Utilities were warning that many neighbourhoods could remain in the dark for much of the week, if not beyond. Public officials and residents were growing impatient.

The wave of late Friday evening storms, called a derecho, moved quickly across the region with little warning. The straight-line winds were just as destructive as any hurricane, but when a tropical system strikes, officials usually have several days to get extra personnel in place.