JACKSON, Mich. -- Wind gusts as high as 56 miles per hour along with snow, sleet and rain made for raw conditions Friday in West Michigan - and for more power outages.

Several roads remained impassable or partially blocked because of fallen trees, tree limbs and power lines, plus other debris.

But the situation could be worse: up north and in southwest Michigan the conditions were worse. Consumers Energy chronicled the extent of the problem in a news release it sent to WOOD Radio News.

Here is the utility company's update:

Consumers Energy has 450 crews on the ground across Michigan in the midst of a significant storm that is surging through the state today. Following a severe weather event earlier this week, this most recent wave of storms has brought high winds and snow and another round of challenging weather is expected to move over the weekend.

“High winds are creating the toughest conditions right now, and some of the damage in southwest Michigan is severe. We understand how difficult it is to be without power, and we want customers to know we are fully prepared and responding with urgency,” said Chris Fultz, one of Consumers Energy’s officers in charge for restoration. “We staged crews and equipment across the state ahead of these storms, and our teams are already assessing damage so our line and forestry crews can move in quickly and safely to restore power.”

Consumers Energy began preparing for the series of storms early this week, moving crews and equipment into place across Michigan. Crews will be working around the clock to restore power as quickly and as safely as possible.

Snow accumulations of up to 9 inches have been reported by the National Weather Service in Northern Michigan, with high winds walloping the entire state and gusts topping 70 mph in some areas. We are closely monitoring the potential for another significant weather system to move into Michigan on Sunday and Monday, which may bring additional high winds, snow and freezing rain.

Consumers Energy urges neighbors to pay attention to travel advisories and not travel unless needed. Customers can continue to check the status of outages at www.ConsumersEnergy.com/OutageCenter. They can also sign up to get outage alerts and restoration times sent to a phone, email or text message, Text ‘REG' to 232273 or visit www.ConsumersEnergy.com/alerts. 

Consumers Energy urges the public to keep important safety tips in mind: 

· Be alert to crews working along roadsides. Drivers should slow down or stop and wait for oncoming traffic to clear so they can go safely past. 

· Stay at least 25 feet away from downed power lines, and to report unguarded downed lines by calling 9-1-1 and Consumers Energy at 800-477-5050. Consumers Energy reminds people that falsely calling in downed lines actually slows down the restoration process for everyone. 

· 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. 

· In some cases, the mast that holds the electric service wires to a home or business may have been damaged or torn away. Crews will reconnect the wires to a home, but only a licensed electrician can repair or replace a mast or a cable. 

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West Michigan's Morning News