THE POWER NUMBERS AS OF 12 NOON TUESDAY: 44,131 OUT ACROSS COUNTY

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WPCNR THE POWER NEWS. March 16, 2010: Con Edison crews working with out-of-state help, powered up 11,000 Westchester Customers since midnight Monday. Yonkers outages were trimmed by some 3,000 customers. Yonkers currently has 11,295 customers without electricity;  Mount Vernon, 7,024; New Rochelle, 6,975; Greenburgh, 6,905;  White Plains, 5,075; and Scarsdale, 4,667 (over 75% of the Con Ed customer base  is affected there.


In other afflicted areas of the county, 1,693 customers are without power in the Tarrytowns; Tuckahoe, 1,247; Rye City, 2,026; Port Chester, 479;  the Pelhams, 919; North Castle, 886; Mt. Pleasant, 1,355; Larchmont/Mamaroneck,1,860; Irvington, 2043; Hastings, 633; Harrison, 2,274; Eastchester, 2,198; Elmsford, 950; Bronxville, 459; Briarcliff/Ossining, 556 and Ardsley, 116.


At 8 A.M. Tuesday morning, Con Edison issued this communique,partially reproduced here:


“As of 6 a.m. today, the company had restored power to over 100,000 customers. Approximately 59,000 customers remained without power: 50,000 in Westchester County, 5,200 in Staten Island, 2,600 in the Bronx, 500 in Queens and 250 in Brooklyn.


The company expects to have all storm-related outages in Brooklyn and Queens restored by Wednesday morning, and the Bronx restored by Wednesday evening, followed by Staten Island on Thursday evening, and Westchester County on Friday.


Con Edison has approximately 600 restoration crews now in the field, in addition to other field support personnel clearing roads and trees.  The number of restoration crews is expected to grow to 675 by Wednesday as additional out-of-state crews arrive.”


On Sunday evening,Con Edison told WPCNR that outside crews from other states were first called for assistance early Saturday evening.


Con Edison in a statement from John Miksad, to the New York Times, said the Con Edison weather forecasts had not indicated the storm being so powerful: “We had in-house forecasts that something was going to converge with winds and rain, but we didn’t think it would be this much.”


 Another Con Ed spokesperson, Allen Drury  said Sunday evening to WPCNR that out-of-state crews could not be called in, in advance because, they had to assure they were not needed in their own home service areas before they could leave.


 

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Out of State Power Crews Arriving, White Plains!

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WPCNR POWER NEWS PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE DAY. PHOTOGRAPHS BY PETER KATZ. MARCH 16, 2010: Out of state power repair crews started arriving in White Plains late Tuesday morning. Con Edison said Sunday calls for aid from out-of-state power companies to help in restoring power to some 70,000 Westchester customers went out early Saturday evening. Here is one crew arriving today in Saxon Woods, led by a Con Edison truck.

 

As of high noon Tuesday, Con Edison was reporting 44,131 Westchester customers were still without power, including 5,075 White Plains customers in White Plains.  Con Edison restored about 11,000 Westchester customers in the last 12 hours, including 3,000 customers in Yonkers.

 

Utilities from Michigan, Ohio, Georgia, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Kentucky and Massachusetts will be assisting Con Edison’s crews, the public utility said Monday evening. Some 675 crews, including Con Edison’s fleet will by active Wednesday the company said. 

 


 


Repair crews from Xtreme Powerline Construction in Port Huron, MI, along with additional personnel in unmarked vehicles are led through the Saxon Woods neighborhood of White Plains by a Con Edison van this morning, making repairs to electric lines brought down in the weekend storm.

 

 


WHITE PLAINS WELCOMES XTREME POWER FROM PORT HURON, MICHIGAN. Convoy from Port Huron, Michigan cruises into Saxon Woods, this morning. Thank you, men, for coming to Westchester’s aid!


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Con Edison Makes Progress: Powers Up 11,000 in 12 hours: Friday for Full County

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WPCNR THE POWER NEWS.  Based on information from Con Edison Media Relations. March 15, 2010: Based on a news release from Con Edison at 8 P.M Monday evening, the company reports it is restoring all of New York city outages before finishing off Westchester County restoration, even though Westchester County as of  11 P.M. has 56,538 customers out and all of New York city as of 8 P.M. has only  14,820 customers without power. Con Edison restored approximately 11,000 customers since 12 noon Monday when 67,000 in the county were without power.


At 11 P.M., 56,538 Westchester County customers are without power, with Yonkers,Greenburg, White Plains Scarsdale and Mount Vernon leading the number of outages: Yonkers has 14,095 out (up 2,000 since 12 noon Monday), Greenburgh, 8,012 of 18,702 residents, down less than 1,000 since noon; Mount Vernon,6,966, New Rochelle, 7,608 (25% of Con Ed customers there); and White Plains,5,667.  Scarsdale according to Con Edison has 80% of Con Ed customers without power, 4,728 of 6,005.


Elsewhere around Westchester County, Tuckahoe has 1,246 out; Tarrytown, 1,429; Rye City, 2,051 (33%); Port Chester, 1068; North Castle, 1,694; Mount Pleasant (County Executive Astorino’s hometown), 1,212;Larchmont/Mamaroneck, 2,605; Irvington, 2,066; Hastings, 646; Harrison, 2,848; Eastchester, 3,125; Dobbs Ferry, 543;Briarcliff, 555; Ardsley, 774.


Con Edison has approximately 500 restoration crews now in the fieldas of 8 P.M. Monday , in addition to other field support personnel clearing roads and trees.  The number of restoration crews is expected to grow to 675 by Wednesday as additional out-of-state crews arrive.


The company expects to have all storm-related outages in Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx restored by Wednesday afternoon, followed by Staten Island on Thursday evening, and Westchester on Friday, it said tonight.


With the ground softened by a huge snowstorm two weeks ago, an ugly mix of over four inches of rain and winds of up to 70 m.p.h. combined to knock trees over like matchsticks over the weekend, felling power lines and complicating clearance efforts, especially in Westchester County and Staten Island.


Over 173,000 lost power, easily eclipsing the outages caused by Hurricane Gloria in 1985, which affected 110,515 customers. 


As of 8 p.m. tonight, the company had restored power to over 100,000 customers. Approximately 70,000 customers remained without power: 55,000 in Westchester County, 9,000 in Staten Island, 3,700 in the Bronx, 1,470 in Queens and 650 in Brooklyn.


Con Edison distributed 31,500 pounds of dry ice at four different locations today, and will resume distribution tomorrow (Tuesday) from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.



Con Edison has additional customer service representatives, electrical and construction crews, along with tree-clearing crews working around the clock to respond to customers and power outages that may occur.


Customers are urged to call Con Edison immediately to report any outages at 1-800-75-CONED (1-800-752-6633). Customers can also report power interruptions or service problems at www.conEd.com and on their cell phones and PDAs.  When reporting an outage, customers should have their Con Edison account number available, if possible, and report whether their neighbors also have lost power.


Customers who have already reported their outage need not call Con Edison again.  They will be called by Con Edison when their estimated restoration time has been established.


During the restoration process, primary distribution feeders are restored first, with the highest priority given to restoring lines that supply the most customers.  Next, the crews fix secondary facilities, such as transformers and secondary cables, again with highest priority given to lines supplying the greatest number of customers.  Individual services, lines serving a single home, will be restored as crews become available.

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Bryant Gardens Turned Back On

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WPCNR THE POWER NEWS. From Lou Bruno, President, Bryant Gardens Corporation (White Plains Co-op). March 15, 2010: Thank you for publicizing the plight of Bryant Gardens residents after Saturday’s storm.

Bryant Gardens engaged Save-A-Tree to clear the roadway of the uprooted tree that interrupted electric service. That allowed Con Edison, spurred by Mayor Bradley and Commissioner Nicoletti, to restore power at 10:10 pm tonight (Monday evening).

Our own Maintenance Department, who were on standby, sprung into action, restoring heat and hot water at 10:45.

At Bryant Gardens, there are 200 families, including more than 70 senior families, who want to say “thanks” to you, the City, and Con Ed, and, of course, to our own super Maintenance team.

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Feiner: Con Ed Puts Westchester Last In Line for Power-Up. Calls for National G

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WPCNR THE FEINER REPORT. From Paul Feiner, Town of Greenburgh Supervisor. (EDITED) March 15, 2010: Paul Feiner, Greenburgh Town Supervisor complained tonight that Con Ed is putting Westchester last on the list of communities that are getting their power restored.


A press release sent out by Con Ed on Monday night indicated that all of Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx will get back power Wednesday. Staten Island will get back power Thursday and Westchester will get back power on Friday. This is unfair. Feiner said in a news release: Con Ed should be giving equal treatment to all counties that are impacted by the power outages.




Greenburgh Town Supervisor Paul Feiner announced that he is asking Governor David Patterson to call in the National Guard to speed up restoration of Con Ed power outages.

 


Greenburgh Town Supervisor Paul Feiner announced that he is asking Governor David Patterson to call in the National Guard to speed up restoration of Con Ed power outages. Feiner said that thousands of Greenburgh & Westchester residents are still out of power. Restoration of power in Greenburgh is progressing slowly. Some residents have reported that their power has been restored. But, many Greenburgh residents are still out of power.  Trees are still down, roads are still closed, wires are down. It’s dangerous, Feiner’s release said.

 

Feiner explained: the National Guard should be used to help Con Ed restoration teams get power back on and to help localities clean up the debris,  remove downed trees. We have residents in the town who can’t get out of their driveways because trees are blocking their driveways. If the National Guard provided local governments & Con Ed with assistance we could get back in shape much faster. The National Guard could also be used to direct traffic at locations where traffic lights are not working.

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County Exec Astorino Works with Governor for Disaster Aid.

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WPCNR COUNTY CLARION-LEDGER. From Westchester County Department of Communications. March 15, 2010 (EDITED) : In the aftermath of this weekend’s devastating rain and wind storm, County Executive Robert P. Astorino today met with Gov. Paterson, FEMA representatives and Con Edison officials, as the county’s Department of Emergency Services began efforts to qualify the county for federal disaster aid.


At a meeting earlier in the day at the county’s Emergency Operations Center in Hawthorne, Astorino briefed Paterson on the damage. The two executives also heard directly from Con Edison on its ongoing efforts to restore power throughout the county. Others present were representatives of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the state police, the county’s police and department of Emergency Services and the state Department of Transportation.   


If Westchester is declared a disaster area by President Obama, it could bring grants and low-interest loans to businesses and residents. This last happened for Westchester in 2007, when torrential rains flooded parts of the county.



Local governments will be gathering information on storm-related damage and turning these reports  over to the county. The state Superintendent of Insurance has a special hotline for storm-related claims: 1-800-342-3736.  Those impacted by the storm are advised to take photos of their damage and hold on to receipts that document damage.


To obtain federal assistance for municipal infrastructure damage, the threshold is $2.9 million in losses.  The state as a whole must document $25 million in losses. The information is forwarded by the state to FEMA and then to the president.


“Con Ed told us that in Westchester and New York City 173,000 customers were without power at some point – more than the number affected by Hurricane Gloria in 1985,” Astorino said.


The main cause was not the rain, but the winds that ripped trees from the ground, smashing electric wires.



 


Astorino reminded residents to stay away from downed wires and to notify their local police departments of any  wires.  People without electric power should make sure they notify Con Ed


directly by calling 1-800-75-CONED; those with access to power may make a report via the company’s Web  site: www.coned.com. (People should not assume that the utility knows of their outage.)


People without power in the NYSEG area (parts of northern Westchester) should call 1-800-572-1131.


For non-emergency matters, residents can call United Way’s 2-1-1 line for help. This helpline will have information about dry ice locations, road closures and any warming centers that may have been set up by local communities.  Hours of operations are 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., seven days a week. If you have trouble accessing 2-1-1, you may call 1-800-899-1479.


 


 

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Town of Greenburgh Reports on Their Con Edison Situation, Roads

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WPCNR THE POWER NEWS. From Town of Greenburgh Supervisor Paul Feiner. March 15, 2010: I received the following update from the police chief. I’m disappointed that progress has been so slow and will be asking Con Ed to assign more resources to Greenburgh. (6,500 are without power). We apologize for the inconveniences.



Please be advised that we are opening up the Theodore Young Community Center tonight as a shelter for those without power. The phone of the center (32 Manhattan Ave) is 989 3600.  


If you know of an elderly resident/disabled resident who you are worried about who you can’t contact and who may be out of power – please advise and we’ll check up on them. I am very sorry that so many Greenburgh residents are being inconvenienced during this storm and appreciate what you are experiencing.Please feel free to call me on my cell: 438 1343 (I don’t have power at home so my home phone isn’t working).


Here are the road closures of of 3:30 P.M. in the Town of Greenburgh:



We are coordinating with all Fire Departments, Department of Public Works and a representative from Con Edison from our Emergency Operations Center.   We have made some progress in opening roads that have been closed since March 13.   Power Company Crews from out of state are now arriving and are being assigned to local problems.  Almost every area of the town has experienced substantial  damage to homes and vehicles.


 Unfortunately Con Edison reports 6,500 customers in Greenburgh are without power.  We have assigned extra officers to patrol these areas.  New reports of trees and wires down have slowed down which will allow all resources involved to concentrate on previously reported incidents.


 

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Senator Gillibrand Calls for Fed Damage Assessment of NY Storm Aftermath

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WPCNR WATCH ON THE POTOMAC. From United States Senator Kirsten Gillibrand’s Office. March 15,2010: After a weekend of extreme weather that killed several people and left more than half a million New Yorkers without power, U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand today urged the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to provide federal assistance to conduct a Preliminary Damage Assessment for Suffolk, Nassau, Westchester, Rockland and Orange Counties, and all five boroughs of New York City that were ravaged by this weekend’s storms.



In her letter to FEMA Administrator William Fugate, Senator Gillibrand explained that more than half a million homes and businesses across New York had lost power at some point, and more than 250,000 were still without power. Several people have been killed, countless homes and buildings are ruined, and infrastructure is badly damaged – leaving many families isolated from quick relief. In addition, Long Island’s beaches have taken a substantial hit across the north and south shores, leaving homes, roads and dunes vulnerable.

“New York residents should not be left shouldering all of the costs from this storm.  The federal government must step in immediately to help residents in New York City, Long Island, and the Lower Hudson Valley,” Senator Gillibrand said. “Local utilities have reported that the weekend nor’easter was the worst storm in 20 years. Thousands of trees are down in communities throughout the region, with dramatic cleanup costs in areas that have already sustained significant losses from previous storms.”

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Bryant Gardens Without Power Since Saturday Night

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WPCNR THE POWER NEWS. From Lou Bruno, President, Bryant Gardens  March 15, 2010 (This is a letter sent by the leader of the Bryant Gardens cooperative on Bryant Avenue to Mayor Adam Bradley, it is one plight of just one of hundreds of apartment complexes around Westchester County that are without power.):


Adam

Thank you for taking quick action to restore power and services in White Plains after the storm.

I am writing to inform you of the outages at Bryant Gardens in the hope that together we can improve the priority of our Con Ed service ticket (WE10046590).

Roughly half of Bryant Gardens — Buildings 1 – 7, with 196 families, including all street and outdoor lights — has had no power since Saturday night.  The affected buildings are serviced by an oil-fired central boiler used for heat (a hot water system) and domestic hot water that can’t be run until power is restored.  Electricity is needed for the pumps in the boiler room (208, 3-phase) that distribute the hot water and pumps in the buildings that circulate the water.

Unlike families in one and two-family residences, that may have alternatives, ours have no safe way to heat their apartments or generate hot water for washing and bathing.

Many — about one-third — of our residents are senior citizens with limited means and greater needs for heat and hot water than others.

The buildings without power get it from a feeder entering the complex from Bryant Ave at the beginning of Bryant Crescent.  Two of our buildings are on Bryant Ave and have power, although one has no heat and hot water.  The other six buildings get power from a Bryant Ave feeder entering at the end of Bryant Crescent and have power.

Buildings 1-7 have no power because a large tree was uprooted by the storm, fell across Bryant Crescent, and severed the power lines on the other side of the roadway.  Save-A-Tree was engaged and cleared the roadway within a few hours after the tree fell.  A Con-Ed “safety representative” appeared on site this morning and has cordoned off the roadway until repair crews can arrive.

We hope you’ll be able to use this information to get Con Ed to assign a higher priority to the large number of Bryant Gardens residents without services, including 60-70 senior citizen families.

Thanks for your help!

—
Best regards,

Louis J. Bruno, President
Bryant Gardens Corporation

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12 hours go by — 67,811 Con Ed County Customers Out — ONE Crew for WP

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WPCNR THE POWER NEWS. March 15,2010: As the forecast for windy10 to 30 mile per hour conditions threatened more tree fellings, Monday morning  as Westchester approachs 12 noon, there are 67,811Con Edison customers without power.


The City of White Plains Communications Director Antoinette Biordi said that Con Edison has advised the city White Plains will be restored by Thursday and the remainder of the city on Friday.


Ms. Biordi said Con Edison has not responded to Mayor Adam Bradley’s pleas yesterday afternoon for more than the one Con Edison wire removal crew currently assigned to the city. “The DPW is right behind the crew,” on their wire clearance process through the city, Biordi told WPCNR, “it takes hours.”


Con Edison announced they will be distributing dry ice in the Saxon Woods Pool parking lot on Mamaroneck Avenue beginning at 12 noon. Residents can use the dry ice to place in their refrigerators to preserve food supplies.


According to the Con Edison Storm Center status grid, the four communities hardest hit at noon continue to be Yonkers, 12,016 out; Greenburgh, 10,289; New Rochelle, 7,732; and White Plains, 6,691.


In White Plains, 697 customers were restored overnight since 11 P.M. Sunday night.


Con Edison announced they will be distributing dry ice in the Saxon Woods Pool parking lot on Mamaroneck Avenue beginning at 12 noon. Residents can use the dry ice to place in their refrigerators to preserve food supplies.


Elsewhere, residents have been piling into local hotels as their homes are without heat due to the power losses.


Around the county, according to Con Edison’s Storm Center statistics as of 12 noon, almost all of Scarsdale is out, with 6,290 customers afffected; Mamaroneck/Larchmont,3,790; Eastchester, 3,893; Harrison, 3,080; North Castle, 1,464; Mount Pleasant,649; Tarrytown, 1,347; Rye City, 2,269; Port Chester, 1,490; Irvington,2,093;  Hastings,1,659; Ardsley, 763.


 

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