The clouds are lifting in PSEG's service area. Ninety-seven percent of the utility's 1.7 million customers affected by Hurricane Sandy last week have had their power restored, the company said in their latest update.

That leaves 45,000 still without power from the hurricane.

More good news from Wednesday's nor'easter is that 20,000 customers who lost power had it restored by 8 pm Thursday night. This included customers affected by an equipment failure in the substation located in the Sewaren section of Woodbridge.

Affected customers who got their lights back on last night were located in portions of Woodbridge Proper, Port Reading, Carteret, Linden, Metuchen, Union, Elizabeth, Kenilworth, Perth Amboy, Roselle, Roselle Park, Westfield, Clark, Edison, and Rahway. 

The company explained that when they are trying to help pockets of customers get their electricity back, they may have to take a power line out of service temporarily, and that cuts service to people who have gotten their service back. It is a temporary measure, and it's to help their neighbors, many of whom may have been without power for over a week. 

Power is often restored from one hour to six hours when the circuit is put out of commission so linemen can do their jobs.

The rest of the latest PSEG update is as follows:

• Since service restoration began, PSE&G has replaced at least 2,500 poles and 1,000 transformers, as well as cut down 41,000 trees, to repair widespread damage from the hurricane.
• Customers may see a variety of vehicles at various damage locations. These trucks are staffed with standby personnel, gas workers, meter readers, and support people who are assisting the restoration effort by keeping the public away from downed wires and other electrical equipment while line crews are making repairs at other locations.
• There currently is no shortage of materials. However, this is an incredible restoration job so we continue to seek materials so we can be covered in case the damage in some areas turns out to be greater than anticipated. FEMA has offered to get materials for us and we will take advantage of that offer.
• Crews are working 16-hour days, with mandated rest periods and meal breaks.
• Since the start of the storm, PSE&G call centers have handled more than 2.1 million calls. We have suspended non-emergency work so that more workers are available to respond to customer calls.