Over the years, NS Power has been blamed by Nova Scotia residents for its poor maintenance record and its failure to quickly reconnect customers after storms. In September 2003, 700,000 Nova Scotia residents were without power for up to two weeks after the passage of Hurricane Juan. The Category 2 storm damaged 27 main transmission lines, several transmission towers, 117 distribution feeders, and 31 major electrical substations. More recently, the issue of the company's investment in the provincial grid has been raised at a leaders' debate during the 2009 election campaign. The company received praise from premier Darrell Dexter for its efforts in restoring power after the passage of Hurricane Earl in September 2010.