80% of customer power restored as Wildwood outage extends past 24 hours

NORTH WILDWOOD, New Jersey (WPVI) -- Thousands of homeowners and businesses in a New Jersey shore town were without power for more than 24 hours as of Saturday, affecting both vacationers and people's livelihoods.

On one of the hottest days so far in the summer of 2023 in North Wildwood, families struggled to find solace from the heat and worried about the impact on their vacation.

READ | Substation fire knocks out power in Wildwood area; some service restored

"We've been trying to hit a bar, can't find anything open. Captain Jack's is closed. It's a downer," said James Harper from Fairless Hills, Pennsylvania.

"We don't want to overload the system as customers are using a lot of power on hot days like this," said Frank Tedesco, a spokesperson for Atlantic City Electric.

The company said crews worked around the clock to repair the power after a fire at the Lake Avenue Substation on Friday resulted in an outage affecting 24,000 people.

As of 10:30 p.m. Saturday, the power was back on for approximately 80% of all customers.

Officials said they expected to have power fully restored late in the evening or overnight Saturday.

Despite working round the clock, officials say the fix is complicated.

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Tedesco said crews are working to get it fixed as "quickly and safely as possible. We're also installing temporary equipment until permanent equipment is fixed at the substation."

Some people cooled off and charged their phones at the North Wildwood Community Center.

"We've had people in here that are on oxygen and need to charge up their oxygen. We had a lot of people last night doing that," said Ann Devlin, an administrative assistant at the center.

Perhaps the coolest place to go on the island was the beach itself. Patrons packed the sand looking for relief in the ocean breeze.

"We came back here and it was hot but it was manageable. We came here to sit in the ocean and be cool," said Melissa Dobley from Elkins Park.

Despite the crowds of people at the beach, businesses were deserted on what would usually be a busy summer weekend.

"Technically, we have an ice cream business, so we're done," said Tejashkumar Patel, the owner of the Wildwood Candy and Ice Cream Company.

Business owners on Wildwood's boardwalk say they lost a lot of money because of the power outage.

"Couple thousands of dollars because it's a really busy weekend here," said Patel.

Beachgoers said it was an odd sight, seeing the beach full but the boardwalk empty.

"It's just eerie like we've never seen the boardwalk still, and we've been coming here since we were 2 and 3 years old," said Jennifer Schecter from Plainview, New York.

Store owners who could operate were working entirely in the dark on Saturday.

"We are like sweaty with no lights, nothing. It's crazy," said the owner of Exotics.

Children on the boardwalk were especially disappointed they couldn't go on any rides.

"I was going to go on a ride with my uncle and I was so sad because I didn't get to," said Evalyn Irvin-Felix from Shippensburg, Pennsylvania.

Vacationers and business owners alike are hopeful the power will be fully restored by Sunday.