Eversource has restored power to more than 146,000 customers in Connecticut since a long-duration nor’easter began affecting the state, while hundreds of line, tree and operations crews continue working to address widespread storm damage.

As of 3 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 27, approximately 17,000 outages remained, according to the utility. Crews and support personnel are responding to emergency calls, clearing blocked roads and assessing damage as strong winds and heavy rain continue to affect the state.

The nor’easter began impacting Connecticut overnight Friday, with conditions worsening as the storm moved through the region. The National Weather Service issued a high-wind alert as crews continued restoration work.

Eversource said crews, working with community partners, have cleared more than 350 blocked roads. The utility also is coordinating restoration work with the goal of having power available at schools ahead of Monday morning classes.

“The nor’easter began impacting our state overnight Friday, and despite conditions only worsening, including a high wind alert from the National Weather Service, without hesitation our crews faced the elements and continue working nonstop,” said Don Scacco, president of Connecticut electric operations at Eversource.

The storm has presented challenges for field operations, with high winds and heavy rain affecting access to damage locations and the ability of crews to safely perform repairs. Eversource said the restoration effort typically becomes more complex as larger outages are resolved, leaving crews to address smaller, more complicated damage locations that can require extensive repairs to restore power to relatively few customers.

The utility also credited investments in smart-grid technology with helping limit the growth of outages during the storm.

“We continue to take on additional damage and will likely do so until the storm leaves our state,” Scacco said.

The restoration effort illustrates the operational challenges utilities face during prolonged coastal storms, when successive rounds of wind and precipitation can create new damage even as crews are repairing existing outages. Access to damaged infrastructure can also be constrained by blocked roads and hazardous conditions, requiring utilities to coordinate line, vegetation-management, operations and emergency-response resources.

Eversource said its crews will continue assessing damage and making repairs until restoration is complete.