More than 5,800 without power in Nappanee and Bremen after morning outage 

NAPPANEE, Ind.---- This morning around 8 a.m., a widespread power outage hit Nappanee and Bremen.

At its peak, more than 5,800 customers were without power, according to NIPSCO. By noon, NIPSCO reported all power had been restored.

Before power was turned back on, Main Street Roasters in Nappanee was limited to drip coffee and whatever baked goods were on hand, relying purely on cash transactions or even giving items away.

Right around 11 a.m., the lights finally kicked back on.

"I came in early this morning and started stocking shelves with coffee, and we found out that there's a power outage, so all the lights were turned off, and pretty quickly we found out it was all throughout town," Main Street Roasters roasting manager Carson Miller said. "So, we weren't really sure what to do as far as closing down or just powering through."

Miller said they couldn't roast coffee or bake anything fresh, but regulars kept trickling in anyway, looking for their usual morning routine.

"I came in today, get a cup of coffee as usual, and there were no lights, and they let me in, and I've been sitting here drinking coffee all morning," regular customer Bruce Jane said. "It's a little strange traffic, and you know, trying to use the use the streetlights are now a four-way stop. Nipsco said that we'd have power by 10:30. I should have called Kalshi, and because I knew that they wouldn't have it, I knew it'd be after that. So, no power."

By noon, power was fully restored across both Nappanee and Bremen. NIPSCO cited an equipment failure for Thursday's power outage and said crews are prepared to respond to all outages as quickly as possible, even unexpected ones.

Despite the uncertainty, staff and customers at Main Street Roasters made the best of a dark morning.

"We were actually playing a game. Categories. So, we weren't really discussing much. We discussed stuff earlier about the power and stuff. But we kinda accepted that were were going to be here for a little bit so," Miller said.

The Wa-Nee Community Schools superintendent told ABC57 power was restored to all five district schools by 11:45 a.m.

Classes were not canceled, but teachers had to adapt. Some took their students outside for class, and kitchen staff pivoted to serve a cold lunch.