WPCNR THE POWER NEWS. By John F. Bailey. January 25, 2006: Consolidated Edison is still compiling the staggering statistics on last week’s “Big Blow in Westchester,” that cut power to 40,000 homes one week ago. Con Edison, according to Chris Olert, official spokesperson for their Media Communications department, Con Edison doubled their repair crews by calling on the mutual aid of out-of-state, and upstate power companies and working the force of “hundreds” (no exact number of men had been exactly determined Tuesday morning) in 8-hours on, 8 hours off. Olert noted that within 24 hours of the storm over 50% of the 40,000 households and customers had had their power restored.
WPCNR learned that as of 4:30 P.M. Thursday afternoon, January 20, 31,000 of the 40,000 customers had been restored according to the Media Communications spokesperson, Joe Petta.
This was mainly accomplished by Con Edison’s bringing in thousands of out-of-state, in-state reinforcements. According to Mr. Olert of Con Edison, giving rough stats on the scope of the repair effort Tuesday morning, Con Ed brought in six companies to aid Con Edison of New York and Con Edison’s Orange & Rockland Division in tackling the massive wind damage caused by last week’s tropical storm conditions.
Olert said crews were brought in from Niagara Mohawk, Wellsback (an electrical contractor from New York City), Hawkeye (another NYC electrical contractor), C.W. Wright from Potomac Electric in Chester, Virginia; Allegheny Power, from Parkersburg, Virginia, which restored a number of White Plains private homes and neighborhoods; and First Energy from Pennsylania and Ohio.
He said this was the worst storm to hit the county since 1997. He passed on the information that all these power companies were paid by Con Edison to come to the county’s rescue, but he did not have a dollar figure on the fees, nor the cost of the damage as of Tuesday morning.
He did not have a break down for the repairs outside companies executed. Olert noted that generally the crews were aided by a Con Edison honcho to take them through the systems.
Olert affirmed that the lines affecting the most customers were restored first, as is always the case. He also noted that the work was slow dangerous work, which often takes the same amount of time in each case, whether you are restoring 2,000 customers or 1 customer.
WPCNR estimates that Allegheny Power, on the scene in White Plains from 10 A.M. Friday morning, January 21 (48 hours after the storm), was repaired over 30 homes in 48 hours in the White Plains area.
Olert said emergency supplemental crews were called in within 24 hours after the start of the storm.
