No Federal Assistance For Downtown Businesses Impacted By Christmas Stroll Power Outage

When the power went out in downtown Nantucket during the 2024 Christmas Stroll, island businesses lost millions in revenue. National Grid absolved itself of any responsibility for those losses, and while the Chamber of Commerce and state officials had pursued assistance from the federal Small Business Administration (SBA), those hopes were dashed this week.

"We could not conclude the requirements for an economic injury declaration have been met," wrote James Stallings, the associate administrator for the SBA's office of disaster recovery and resilience, in a letter to Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey earlier this month. "This event does not meet the definition of a disaster, defined in the Small Business Act as 'a sudden event which causes severe damage'. The documentation submitted shows small businesses lost one to two days' sales as a result of the power outage; however, the closure of a business for one to two days does not usually constitute a substantial economic injury as defined by disaster regulations."

Stallings stated that the economic injury disaster loans being sought for Nantucket businesses due to the Stroll power outage are typically issued to provide working capital to cover normal operating expenses those businesses could have paid had the disaster not occurred.

"These loans do not cover lost income, profits, or physical losses," Stallings stated. 

Meanwhile, businesses that filed claims with National Grid have all reported that the utility company has rejected them, declining to provide any assistance.

"National Grid pays claims in line with our state regulated operating tariffs, and on the basis of negligence," National Grid's director of claims and systems Joseph Blancato, Jr., told one downtown Nantucket business owner in an email. "The investigation in this case did not reveal any negligence and we are not in a position to pay the claim."

The power outage, which affected nearly 200 businesses from the north side of Main Street to Broad Street during a 27-hour period at the peak of the 2024 Christmas Stroll weekend, cost those establishments an estimated $3 million in lost revenue, according to Nantucket Chamber of Commerce executive director Peter Burke.

"Despite our best efforts, and the support of local and State elected officials as well as the local SBA chapter, the federal SBA office has declined to certify the Stroll Power Outage as an economic disaster event," Burke told Chamber members this week. "While I am exasperated with the decision, I do sincerely appreciate the effort and support from all of you as we tried our best to get this certification."

Burke told Chamber members that the SBA does have other loan options available through the regional Small Business Development Center that could potentially be accessed.

The Chamber continues to accept donations and grant applications to its "Lights Out" fund which was created to assist the businesses affected by the outage.

The downtown blackout persisted for roughly 27 hours - from 10:20 a.m. on Saturday, Dec. 7, 2024 through 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 8 - before power was restored. National Grid identified the problem as two sections of underground electric cable that failed and needed to be replaced, requiring the utility company to send specialized crews and equipment to Nantucket by ferry late Saturday night and early Sunday morning. But by the time the lights came back on, a weekend that is typically one of the most profitable of the year for downtown businesses had been wiped out.

The utility company subsequently identified the problem as two sections of underground electric cable along South Water Street that failed and needed to be replaced.