The crisis in Gary, Indiana had already stretched into its second week when one of the city’s most recognizable artists took it to national television. During an appearance on All In with Chris Hayes, Freddie Gibbs, who was born and raised in Gary, argued that the August 11 storm exposed problems that residents have been living with far longer than the current blackout. “This is an infrastructure problem Gary has. This storm is shedding light on it,” he said, describing the city’s electrical system as “archaic.” Gibbs also connected the response to Gary’s demographics. “We are a predominantly Black city that tends to get ignored.”
The storm that triggered the outages was extreme. Winds reportedly reached 99 mph as severe weather moved through Northwest Indiana, damaging utility poles and transmission equipment across NIPSCO’s service area. More than 38,000 homes and businesses in Gary lost electricity, and some residents remained without it nearly two weeks later. The consequences went well beyond dark houses. Families lost refrigerated food, businesses were forced to close, and residents who depend on electrically powered medical equipment faced additional risk. Gary schools were also closed for days as the city worked through the damage.
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Residents Are In Desperate Need Of Help
Gibbs’ criticism came as NIPSCO faced growing pressure over how long Gary was taking to recover compared with surrounding communities. The utility has said the city suffered some of the most complex damage from the storm and will require extensive rebuilding, including the replacement of hundreds of utility poles. NIPSCO set an August 25 deadline for substantially completing restoration work in Gary, though the company cautioned that individual customers could remain without service afterward. Indiana Gov. Mike Braun has called for an investigation into the utility’s storm preparedness and infrastructure spending, while Gary Mayor Eddie Melton has repeatedly said the length of the outage is unacceptable.
Gibbs has put his money where his mouth is as well. During an appearance on The Breakfast Club, Melton said the rapper had contacted the city and made a “significant contribution” toward recovery efforts. The mayor did not disclose the amount. Gibbs was overseas when much of the crisis unfolded, but his involvement placed him among several public figures who have stepped in as Gary residents waited for power to return.
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Gary native Glenn Robinson donated $100,000 for storm relief, with the money earmarked for direct assistance to residents. Grammy-winning singer Deniece Williams, another Gary native, helped provide meals to people affected by the outage. Social media personality Keith Lee brought his own relief effort to the city, committing $15,000 toward supplies and organizing a community giveaway with The Salvation Army. Indiana Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton reportedly matched Lee’s contribution, bringing their combined donation to $30,000. Thousands attended the August 24 event, where residents could receive food and recovery supplies.
NIPSCO maintains that restoration times reflected the severity of the storm damage rather than the income or racial makeup of affected communities. Gibbs believes the blackout's duration has only strengthened the argument that Gary’s problems did not begin when the winds arrived. “This isn’t a problem that started with the storm,” he said.
