Connecticut Light & Power is using the region's fastest place, Waterford Speedbowl, as a regional staging area for its trucks and workers.

And the thousands of people who have been without electricity since Sunday surely hope some racing pedigree rubs off on CL&P's power restoration efforts.

According CL&P spokeswoman Karen Samide, between 500 and 700 workers are based at the Speedbowl parking lot near the entrance to the race track.

In the lot there's a large tent covering tables where crews can eat meals prepared by caterers from Massachusetts.

Samide said 160 bucket trucks, from as far away as Oklahoma, are based out of the site.

"They all drove here," Samide said. "It's a long way in a bucket truck."

Eight bucket trucks arrived from Florida Thursday afternoon, according to Dan Hagen, CL&P area operations manager.

Hagen said just because passers-by can see trucks parked in a row at the staging area does not mean there is no work going on.

Hagen said when out-of-state crews arrive, CL&P managers give them a list of CL&P protocols, lists of emergency contacts and the location of area hospitals.

"They are doing a hard and dangerous job," Hagen said.

The Florida trucks began to head out to work sites around 3 p.m.

Hagen said crews are working 16-hour shifts, to ensure they get at least eight hours of sleep. Most crews are staying at area hotels.

"I think we commandeered all the hotel rooms in the region," Samide said.

Samide said 75 percent of repair work takes place during daylight hours, and the rest overnight.

CL&P also provides work crews daily newsletters informing them of progress and where they will be working.

Hagen said CL&P has had a long-standing agreement with the Speedbowl to use the parking lot in case of emergencies.

"It's a good location," Hagen said. "It's near I-395 and I-95."

Much of the diesel refueling for the trucks has been taking place at the Crystal Mall parking lot, though smaller vehicles have been filling up at local gas stations.

The Speedbowl spot is also close to Salem, which continues to have widespread outages. Hagen said there are no substations in Salem, so the majority of beneficial repair work for Salem residents has been taking place in Colchester and East Lyme.

Hagen said that some workers have been stung by criticism from residents and public officials that they aren't working fast enough.

"They're only human," Hagen said. "Many of them are a long way from home and are working hard."

Hagen said a "friendly honk on the horn," or a "tap on the shoulder" would go a long way terms of morale.

The Speedbowl is one of several temporary operations centers in the eastern part of the state.

"The extent of (storm) damage in eastern Connecticut was much more extreme than it was in the western part," CL&P President Jeff Butler said after announcing the new auxiliaries in Waterford, Westbrook and Brooklyn.

CL&P has been making "steady progress and our employees have been doing a great job," Butler said. But for those still without power, "we recognize we have a lot of work to do."

s.chupaska@theday.com