Pat Collins, left and Keith Wenner, far right, of Leisure Living Apartments discuss the power outage with Milford volunteer Troy Haines, center.

(UPDATE) — As of Tuesday morning, power has not been restored to the east side of Milford, which includes Leisure Living Apartments. The cause of the extended power outage was a large tree that was uprooted during Monday’s severe weather and which damaged several power lines on Beer Road.

As a result of the lack of power overnight, Milford volunteer firefighters returned to the apartment building and went door-to-door advising residents of the situation and offering them overnight accommodation at the fire station.

Ultimately, three Leisure Living residents spent the night on cots at the fire station while the rest chose to return to their apartments to sleep overnight. In the morning, firefighters returned to Leisure Living and did a welfare check on all the residents who stayed there overnight.

MILFORD — Downed power lines resulting from Monday’s strong winds and ice have resulted in hundreds of residents without power. A few of them have taken up temporary lodging in the Milford Fire Station.

According to Keith Wenner, a resident of Leisure Living Apartments, the power went out a little after noon, Monday, Dec. 28, leaving several elderly residents without heat or power. Wenner, Pat Collins and Shawna Brovont were among those who were taken to the fire station where they could stay warm.

Brian Haines, a Milford firefigher, said they learned of the situation through word of mouth. “We got a group of about 12 guys together and started bringing them back.”

“I never rode in a fire truck before,” remarked Collins, who was painting at the time of the power cut.

The department hoped the situation would be resolved by Northern Indiana Public Service Company soon, but as of 8 p.m., the news wasn’t good. A tree had fallen on Beer Road, taking with it several power lines. According to Haines, NIPSCO reported they would be working on restoring power for most of the night.

In the meantime, Milford volunteer firefighters were in the process of informing other residents at Leisure Living of the situation. They will also be retrieving necessary medications for people like Collins, who is a diabetic and in need of her insulin and other medications.

Although they’re in for a long night, the residents expressed thanks to the volunteers who showed up at their doors. “It’s the best fire department in Kosciusko County,” stated Wenner.