Bonners Ferry Local Guide including all of Boundary County Idaho

Three days after storm, many North Idaho residents still powerless

Tuesday, July 3, 2007; KXLY

Many North Idaho residents are still feeling the impact from Friday's brief but very destructive storm, with many residents in Bonner County still without power three days later. The storm knocked down more than a hundred power lines from Bonner County to the Canadian border and Northern Lights Electric is reporting that 2,500 customers are still without power. Crews have been working around the clock since Friday to restore the power which was knocked out during the storm. Northern Lights says this is the worst power outage it has experienced in 70 years. With new power poles going up it's only a matter of time before North Idaho resident Kathy Kruese's life can return to normal. "The past three days have been literally hell," she said. "I haven't been able to sleep." Kruese, along with the rest of her 40 or so neighbors, have no power. "It's pretty bad when you can't wash your dishes," she said, noting that her sink is full of dirty dishes and her refrigerator is getting warm. Shes already thrown out about $300 worth of meat. Her husband Wayland has been filling up buckets of water from Lake Pend Orielle to use around the house. "I don't have water, I can't use my bathroom," Kathy said. Now she and her neighbors are counting the minutes until their power is restored. Northern Lights Electric can't say when her lights will be on as there's just too many lines down. Already crews have replaced almost 80 new poles, so for now residents like the Kreuses can do nothing more than wait. "I dont think I can do this much longer, I'm dirty, tired and I'm just a wreck," she said. - Full Story