As bitter cold temps persist, more than 1,000 area households remain in the dark

New Hampshire power restoration efforts outpacing Maine's, but many still remain off the grid (Courtesy photo)

CONCORD, N.H. - With overnight bitter cold temps on Christmas night in the teens and a high today below freezing some 6,000 households in New Hampshire and 25,000 in Maine remain in the dark today.

For those still without power, Homeland Security and Emergency officials continue to warn residents not to forget safety protocols during a loss of power.

"If you are still without power, continue to practice power outage safety. Never run a generator indoors," said Robert Buxton, Director of the New Hampshire Department of Safety's Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management.

Within The Rochester Voice coverage area in Maine, 427 households in Lebanon remain in the dark along with another 291 in Berwick and 384 in Sanford.

New Hampshire outages remain, too, but in far smaller numbers, as follows: nine households in Barrington, 10 in Dover, nine in Milton, eight in Rochester, fewer than four in Somersworth and 18 in Strafford.

Report power outages to your utility provider every 24 hours until it is restored:

Eversource 1-800-662-7764

Liberty Utilities 1-855-349-9455

NH Electric Co-Op 1-800-343-6432

Unitil 1-888-301-7700

Buxton also makes the following safety recommendations:

· Stay informed by signing up for NH Alerts and monitoring National Weather Service radio or broadcast weather reports.

· Drivers should be alert for crews clearing debris and use caution.

· Use flashlights, rather than candles, for emergency lighting.

· Do not use a gas range or oven as an alternate source of heat.

· Only use a generator that has been wired to the building electrical service by a professional electrician.

· Never run a generator inside a building or in an enclosed space and keep them 10 feet away from buildings with the exhaust pointed away.

· Never drive around barriers or remove them from closed roadways.

Learn more about power outage safety at ReadyNH.gov.