Hamilton retailers struggled to find their feet yesterday as many faced a second day of being without power after a massive plant failure at electric light company on Thursday.

?This has been a pretty big blow. For most (retailers) this is the most significant (sales) time of year. To close down for two or three days is significant,? co-chair of the Bermuda Chamber of Commerce retail division Kristi Grayston said.

Businesses were assured by Belco officials that the severe power outage that left the Island in a blackout on Thursday, and much of Hamilton still without power yesterday, would be put right by Monday morning.

Mrs. Grayston, who runs Pulp & Circumstance, said July and August are generally quiet periods in her operations but the opposite was true for most other retailers.

A second day without power for business owners, particularly retailers, hits at a time when most can little afford the down time. And there was the very real prospect last night that businesses might face a third day of blackout today.

Retailers have been hit in recent years by sliding sales as tourist spending has fallen, and bids dating back several years to Government for duty relief have fallen on deaf ears.

Some say the dire straits retailers face was underlined in March when landmark department store Trimingham Brothers Ltd. said it would close after 164 years in business. The closure, scheduled for next week, puts more than 200 staff out of work.

Mrs. Grayston said yesterday that she and co-chair Somers Cooper will renew calls to Government for duty relief after being hit by this two-days and counting power outage.

?We understand that Belco are doing what they can,? said Mrs. Grayston but she pointed out that the power outage means many retailers are having to pay staff despite no money coming in.

Mrs. Grayston employs up to six staff in her operations on any given day. Some retailers will employ many more.

Diane Gordon, executive vice-president of the Bermuda Chamber of Commerce, said while its 700 corporate members ? many of them retailers ? were hoping to open for business today many were wary of making any firm commitment after planning to be open yesterday only to find the power outage carried over to day two.

?We have our fingers crossed,? said Mrs. Gordon, pointing out that while some shops could open without electricity some operations could not realistically open until power was restored.

Mrs. Grayston said Belco was not telling them whether or not power would be back on today, and there was a good chance it would not be.

Despite the dark situation, a number of Hamilton businesses soldiered on yesterday, opening their doors to customers with lanterns and flashlights used to light premises.

The notable exception to this were restaurants, with lunch wagons ? that are generally powered by generators ? doing a rush of business after most eateries were forced to stay closed a second day.

Yesterday shops that opened their doors despite being in the dark included Queen Street stores, Gosling Brothers Ltd., the Island Shop and the Bermuda Book Store, which was poised to release the latest Harry Potter volume at midnight.

Other stores that confirmed they would be open today were Gorhams, The Beach on Front Street, Monty?s Restaurant on Pitts Bay Road, the Music Box on Reid Street, Lindo?s in Warwick and Devonshire and Market Place grocery stores across the Island.

Mobile telephone provider Cingular Wireless said it was no longer experiencing the network congestion that it had on Thursday as many residents and businesses relied heavily on mobile networks for communications.

A BTC spokesperson said telephone service is operational but there are intermittent service outages throughout the Island as Belco works to restore power. Mobility, the BTC-owned cellular phone provider, said its systems were also fully operational yesterday.

Cingular?s call centre is open but retail operations will be closed until Monday, said general manager Cheryl Packwood. Mobility said whether it opened today depended on whether or not power was restored.