JACKSON, MI, April 14, 2026 – With heavy rains continuing, Consumers Energy is preparing over 200 crews to be ready to restore power if severe weather – including possible high winds, rain, hail and even tornadoes – strikes Michigan later today and Wednesday.

Consumers Energy continues to assist the Cheboygan community, where local and state officials are preparing for the possibility of flooding, and other Northern Michigan communities where heavy rains are causing similar concerns.

Consumers Energy’s 13 dams continue to operate safely. High water levels downstream of some of those locations on five Michigan rivers have resulted from the ongoing rain.

“We understand the concerns that many of our communities are facing, and we are committed to helping them, whatever their needs,” said Greg Salisbury, Consumers Energy’s president of electric distribution. “We are mobilizing our resources to get the lights back on for anyone who’s affected by this storm and to providing our expertise to any communities in need this week.”

Customers can check the status of outages at ConsumersEnergy.com/OutageCenter. They can also sign up for outage alerts and restoration times sent to a phone, email or text message, Text ‘REG’ to 232273 or visit ConsumersEnergy.com/alerts.  

Safety remains a top priority for the company. Customers are asked to practice extreme caution and follow these safety tips:

• Stay away from flooded areas near electrical equipment. Never walk, drive or wade through floodwaters that may be near power lines, substations, transformers or other electrical infrastructure.
• Stay at least 25 feet away from downed power lines. Report unguarded downed lines by calling 9-1-1 and Consumers Energy at 800-477-5050.  
• Turn off electricity if it is safe to do so. If flooding is approaching your home and you can safely access the main breaker while standing on dry ground, shut off power. Do not attempt this if water is already present.
• Unplug sensitive electronics like TVs, computers and printers. Turn power strips off.
• Never use a generator in an attached garage, basement, enclosed patio or near any air intakes. Doing so could cause a generator to produce hazardous levels of carbon monoxide, an odorless, colorless and deadly gas. Read more guidance on safe generator use here.
• Consumers Energy will trim or remove trees interfering with electric restoration activities. Once safe to do so, clean-up of debris from tree trimming or removal during a storm emergency is the responsibility of individual property owners.

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Consumers Energy is Michigan’s largest energy provider, providing natural gas and/or electricity to 6.8 million of the state’s 10 million residents in all 68 Lower Peninsula counties. We are committed to delivering reliable and affordable energy to our customers 24/7.  

Learn more at ConsumersEnergy.com.