Outages keep rising in Conn. at start of storm

BERLIN, Conn. (AP) — The number of power outages in Connecticut is climbing as Hurricane Sandy moves closer to the state.

Connecticut Light & Power says about 7,700 customers were without power Monday, up from 158 earlier in the day. It's still less than 1 percent of the 1.2 million utility customers.

The Berlin (BURR-lin) based utility is assuring customers and state officials that it has made significant improvements to avoid widespread outages similar to what followed the freak October snow storm that hit Connecticut last year.

A spokeswoman says linemen can work during the storm but that will end as winds pick

The United Illuminating Co., which serves shoreline towns that are expected to be hit hard by storm surges from Long Island Sound, reported only scattered outages Monday.