Eastern P.E.I. is saying thank you to the Maritime Electric crews who helped get the power back on last week by holding a free steak dinner for them.

Some residents and businesses were without power for days after a combination of ice, heavy snow and strong winds caused dozens of power poles to come down.

Chef Michael Smith, one of the people helping organize the dinner tonight at Fortune Hall, said the crews working on the lines went above and beyond, and the community wanted to give back.

"It was a really crazy week," he said. "To see anybody working around the clock in the rain, the sleet, the ice, the snow, the dark, away from their families. You know, it just struck all of us how lucky we are to have folks like that ready to go and not complaining, just doing their work. I think we were all looking for a way to say thank you."

Smith said food is being donated by Colville Bay Oyster Company, Atlantic Beef Products, MacPhee's IGA and local farmers. He's harvesting some veggies from his own garden for the dinner.