After Hurricane Irma: About 1 Million Without Power in Central Florida; 5.6 Million in State

(TNS) — ORLANDO, Fla. — More than 5.6 million homes and businesses in Florida — including about 1 million in Central Florida — did not have electricity on Tuesday morning, according to the state's Division of Emergency Management.

Officials said people could be without power for a week or more. They say it will be the largest restoration process in history.

Utility companies are still assessing before giving a more specific time period.

"Our crews are working as quickly and safely as possible to assess damage to our system and restore power," Orlando Utilities Company said in a statement on its website. "We are focusing on restoring power to feeders that serve critical customers like hospitals, wastewater plants, fire, and police."

OUC had about 95,000 customers without power.

Duke Energy, which has 9,000 workers trying to restore power, said customers don't need to report their outages.

"We will not stop until we get everyone back on," Duke Energy Florida President Harry Sideris said in a statement.

Hurricane Irma blasted the entire state over the weekend and Monday morning causing flooding and downed trees and power lines.

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