THE WORLD READS WHITE PLAINS CITIZENETREPORTER — 8,324,077 VISITS IN ONE YEAR | 2,905,611 VISITORS VISIT 8,324,077 TIMES 3 TIMES EVERY DAY IN ONE YEAR. HIGHEST ACTIVITY IN WPCNR HISTORY.White PlainsCitizeNetReporter lifted its worldwide visits from unique visitors to wpcnr.com to 8,324,077,a 1,306,419 increase in visits in one year from 7,017,658 visits to the site last year which covers White Plains and Westchester County. The 8,324,077 visits were made by 2,005,611 unique visitors who visited wpcnr an average of 3 visits a day. ON JULY 20- -2026 visitors have accessed wpcnr and made 3,072 visits an average of 1.6 visits. In the last week 33,495 individual vistors made 54,458 visits, averaging 1.6 visits. In the last month, 152,940 visitors recorded 229,338 visits (1.5 visits)

Con Ed Not Shifting Units Out of Westchester, Astorino Assures

Posted on October 31, 2012 by John Bailey

WPCNR THE POWER NEWS. From Westchester County Department of Communications. October 31,2012:

County Executive Robert Astorino has spoken personally with Con Edison CEO Kevin Burke and NYSEG CEO Mark Lynch about the recovery effort that is underway in Westchester.

“Our biggest priority is working with Con Edison and NYSEG to get power restored and to assist our municipalities in removing the fallen trees,” Astorino said.

Astorino also said he received assurances that Westchester is getting a full complement of resources from the utilities.

“We have been assured that Con Edison is not diverting any resources from Westchester to New York City or other parts of the region. We will hold the company to its promise,” he said.

Con Edison and NYSEG officials told Astorino that critical substations and transmission lines were damaged by the storm. Repairs to those must be completed in order to permit Westchester homes and businesses to have power restored.

An immediate priority, Astorino said, had been getting power restored to several hospitals, more than a dozen nursing homes, and other critical-care facilities that were operating on generators.

Executive Robert P. Astorino joined Gov. Cuomo and Sens. Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand today (Wednesday) on a helicopter tour of the New York metropolitan area to continue to assess the damage inflicted by Hurricane Sandy.

The regional flyover included a bird’s-eye view of Westchester County, where substantial storm damage and power outages were caused by Sandy’s ferocious winds. The federal officials saw flood-damaged areas along the Long Island Sound and communities littered with fallen trees.

“The devastation is widespread, especially on Long Island and in Breezy Point, Queens,” Astorino said after the helicopter tour. “While other communities suffered more substantial flood damage, Westchester was hardest hit by downed trees that are blocking hundreds of streets in our county.”

Con Edison reported that about 176,000 customers were without power on Wednesday – down from about 183,000 a day earlier. NYSEG reported 31,555 customers without power in the county – a drop of a few hundred from the day before.

Astorino also met with FEMA officials on Wednesday to begin the effort to obtain federal reimbursement for the costs of the storm. He said the county is coordinating the effort to document the costs of the storm to the county and its municipalities.

In order to qualify for FEMA funding, Westchester must document about $3.2 million in storm damage. New York State requires about $25 million in damages.

“There’s no doubt we will be able to meet that threshold for a disaster declaration,” Astorino said. “We are working with our municipal partners to assemble the information we need.”

Astorino noted that the county’s Emergency Operations Center was still fully activated around-the-clock to assist communities trying to recover from the storm. Daily conference calls with all municipalities continue to be held to share information and determine what resources each community needs.

The county executive urged parents to exercise common sense and caution this Halloween night, saying some neighborhoods might have too many hazards to ensure their children’s safety.

See www.westchestergov.com for updated developments.

Con Edison Restores power to 2,000 Customers in WP– 8,512 OUT

Posted on October 31, 2012 by John Bailey

WPCNR THE POWER NEWS. OCTOBER 31, 2012:

As of 5 P.M. Wednesday afternoon, Consolidated Edison reports restoring power to approximately 2,300 White Plains customers, leaving 8,512 without electricity in the city at this hour out of 23,512 customers in the city.

Throughout Westchester County 170,722 remain without power of 348,198 Con Ed accounts — approximately half of county Con Ed customers.

New York State Electric and Gas on its website reports 31,555 of its 32,524 customers in Westchester County are without power.

Yonkers is the most affected city with 20,865 disconnected and New Rochelle is right up with them at 20,289 out, Mount Vernon reports 15,299 out; Greenburgh, 8,871; White Plains 8,512; Port Chester Village, 7,728; Mount Pleasant, 6,458 and Harrison, 6,309.

Here is the Westchester County Outage situation, as reported by Consolidated Edison as of 5 PM:

TOWN CUSTOMERS W/O POWER TOTAL CUSTOMERS RESTORATION

Ardsley Village	1,597	1,786	Pending
Bedford town	819	1,018	Pending
Briarcliff Manor village	2,037	2,964	Pending
Briarcliff Ossining	0	0	Pending
Bronxville village	1,252	2,529	Pending
Buchanan village	300	1,010	Pending
Cortlandt town	4,945	12,295	Pending
Croton-on-Hudson village	2,231	3,629	Pending
Dobbs Ferry village	1,925	4,153	Pending
Eastchester town	3,418	7,900	Pending
Elmsford village	195	2,104	Pending
Greenburgh town	8,871	18,736	Pending
Harrison village	6,309	9,470	Pending
Hastings-on-Hudson village	1,989	3,436	Pending
Irvington village	1,537	2,632	Pending
Larchmont village	1,600	1,983	Pending
Mamaroneck town	3,493	5,259	Pending
Mamaroneck village	3,443	8,704	Pending
Mount Kisco (Town of Bedford)	0	0	Pending
Mount Kisco (Town of New Castle)	0	0	Pending
Mount Kisco village	1,053	5,075	Pending
Mount Pleasant town	6,458	8,783	Pending
Mount Vernon city	15,299	29,297	Pending
New Castle town	5,027	6,574	Pending
New Rochelle city	20,289	28,958	Pending
North Castle town	4,324	4,894	Pending
North Pelham	1,006	2,071	Pending
Ossining town	824	2,307	Pending
Ossining village	3,155	8,980	Pending
Peekskill city	2,422	10,239	Pending
Pelham Manor village	1,501	2,051	Pending
Pelham village	463	760	Pending
Pleasantville village	1,207	3,338	Pending
Port Chester village	7,728	10,254	Pending
Rye Brook village	2,936	3,720	Pending
Rye city	3,770	6,070	Pending
Rye town	0	0	Pending
Scarsdale village	4,395	6,025	Pending
Sleepy Hollow	1,557	3,515	Pending
Somers town	0	0	Pending
Tarrytown village	2,209	5,217	Pending
Tuckahoe village	452	2,867	Pending
White Plains city	8,512	23,854	Pending
Yonkers city	20,865	75,568	Pending
Yorktown town	6,079	8,173	Pending

NEW YORK STATE ELECTRIC AND GAS REPORT..

	Total Customers by Municipality/Township	Customers Without Power
BEDFORD T	6,657	6,650
BEEKMAN T	5	3
CARMEL T	40	37
LEWISBORO T	5,461	5,448
NORTH SALEM T	2,391	2,125
PATTERSON T	2	2
PAWLING T	2	1
POUNDRIDGE T	2,365	2,361
PUTNAM VALL T	9	8
SOMERS T	9,087	8,419
SOUTHEAST T	42	40
YORKTOWN T	6,463	6,461
		31,555

One House at a Time. 2 Hours to Restore One Home.

Posted on October 31, 2012 by John Bailey

WPCNR THE POWER NEWS. October 31, 2012:

‘

9:30 A.M. TUESDAY– DPW STYMIED BY DOWNED WIRE

The White Plains DPW crew and rolling stock of chipper,power backhoe and debris truck arrived to unblock the city side street where two tree trunks were blocking the road and a driveway at approximately 9:30 A.M. yesterday. As they were approaching with power saws, a neighbor saw that one of the limbs was lying across a powerline. The crew had not realized it. Their crew chief phoned in the report of the downed line that was still connected to the home it was leading to.

4:30 P.M. — CON ED IN BLUE, DPW IN YELLOW COMBINE TO START THE CLEARING/POWER-UP

A Con Edison crew arrived at 4:30 P.M. to cut the wire enabling the city DPW crew to begin clearing the limbs from the road, while the Con Edison crew waited to restore the cut power to the house after the clean-up of the storm debris. Two hours later at 6:30 P.M. the line was reconnected to the house. It took Con Edison’s crew about a half an hour to forty-five minutes after the DPW crew had cleared the driveway and roadway to enable Con Ed to access the home’s power connection to repower the home. The time–approximately two hours.

INTO THE JUNGLE, 4:30 P.M. CHAINMAN CUTS INTO THE LIMBS

BACKHOEMAN TAKES A BITE OUT OF DISASTER-ONE BITE AT A TIME.

DUMPS LIMBS ON ROADSIDE.

FINISHING CLEARING 5:40 P.M.

CONED TEAM MOVES IN TO MAKE THE CONNECTION (45 MINUTE PROCESS) IN GATHERING DUSK.

BRINGING IN JUICE. WIRE MAY BE SEEN JUST BELOW WHITE EXTENSION OF BUCKET ARM, AS CON ED TECHNICIAN MAKES THE HOOKUP

This scene is being reenacted house by house, neighborhood to neighborhood and it is perhaps indicative of the logistic problems encountered with each neighborhood. The Con Edison crew has to be called in to cut electricity enabling the tree-clearing. Depending on how extensive the tree debris is, and how far the line is in to the house, it can take as it did here two hours to restore one home.

As of Wednesday morning at 9:30 A.M., 10,881 White Plains customers were without power out of 23,854 Con Edison customers in the city.

In New York City, 585,099 customers were powerless out of approximately 3 Million customers according to the Con Edison Summary.

Con Edison is warning Trick-or-Treaters to beware of downed wires and to wear bright clothing because of piled tree debris on the sides of roads, and the possibility of downed wires that have not been discovered yet.

Con Ed Predicts: Brooklyn Manhattan Power Up in 4 Days. Others-7 Days

Posted on October 30, 2012 by John Bailey

WPCNR THE POWER NEWS. From Consolidated Edision. October 30, 2012:

Con Edison is assessing damage and restoring service after Hurricane Sandy toppled trees and flooded underground equipment in the most devastating storm in company history.

The company estimates that customers in Brooklyn and Manhattan served by underground electric equipment should have power back within four days. Restoration to all customers in other areas served by overhead power lines will take at least a week.

(Editor’s Note: A resident of Greenridge Avenue, when he was reporting his electric outage said that Con Edison told him 7 to 10 days to restore White Plains.)

As of 11 a.m., the company reported approximately 780,000 customers without electrical service. That included about 250,000 customers in Manhattan, 180,000 in Westchester County, 108,000 in Queens, 109,000 in Staten Island, 87,000 in Brooklyn, and 45,000 in the Bronx.

The outages were roughly split between the company’s underground and overhead systems. The company has already restored power to approximately 140,000 of the 930,000 customers impacted at some point by the storm.

In overhead areas, many roads are blocked by fallen trees or flooded. Restoring electrical service to underground equipment demands cleaning all components of sea water, drying and testing to make it safe to restore power.

The previous record number of storm outages in Con Edison territory occurred last year, when Hurricane Irene caused about 203,000 customers to lose service.

In addition to the 250,000 electric customers without electricity in Manhattan, every steam customer south of 42nd Street lost service. In some cases, Con Edison disconnected steam customers to protect the system from flooding conditions. The restoration times of those customers is still being evaluated.

Customers can report downed power lines, outages, and check service restoration status by computer or mobile device at www.conEd.com. They also can call 1-800-75-CONED (1-800-752-6633). When reporting an outage, it is helpful if customers have their Con Edison account number available, if possible, and report whether their neighbors also have lost power. Customers who report outages will be called by Con Edison with their estimated restoration times as they become available.

The company is advising its customers to pay close attention to reports from city and municipal officials. Con Edison will continue to provide updates through the media as the storm moves closer. Important information will be posted on the company’s website, www.conEd.com.

For instructions on how to report an outage, click here: http://bcove.me/6sx1yox5

Con Edison offers the following safety tips:

If you see downed electrical wires, do not go near them. Treat all downed wires as if they are live. Never attempt to move or touch them with any object. Be mindful that downed wires can be hidden from view by tree limbs, leaves or water.
Report all downed wires to Con Edison and your local police department immediately. If a power line falls on your car while you’re in it, stay inside the vehicle and wait for emergency personnel.
If you still have power, charge your cell phones, lap tops and other mobile devices, so that they’ll work if you do lose power.
If your power goes out, turn off all lights and appliances to prevent overloaded circuits when power is restored.
Check to make sure your flashlights and any battery-operated radios are working. Also, make sure you have a supply of extra batteries. Weather updates and news on power outages can be heard on most local radio and television stations.
Avoid opening your freezer to see if food is still frozen. Every time you open the door, room-temperature air enters and speeds the thawing process. Most fully loaded freezers will keep food frozen for approximately 36 to 48 hours; half-full freezers will keep food frozen for approximately 24 hours.

The company is in constant communication with the New York City Office of Emergency Management and the Westchester County Department of Emergency Services and company personnel are working closely with city and municipal emergency officials.

Siding Ripped Off 221 Main Street Tower. Roof Matting Blown off Library

Posted on October 30, 2012 by John Bailey

WPCNR MAIN STREET JOURNAL. Special to WPCNR from Don Hughes. October 30, 2012:

Don Hughes advises WPCNR that siding and insulation, ripped by the winds of Hurricane Sandy off the top of the 221 Main Street tower, as reported by the Mayor’s Office, is littering Main Street and Renaissance Plaza as of early after. The city has taped off Main and Hamilton and there is traffic back-up.

Huges also reports that roof matting stored on the roof of the White Plains Library has been blown into the courtyards below the library.

Mr. Hughes’ photograph below shows how the pinnacle of 5 Renaissance Plaza has been damaged. (View is from the East.)

City Issues Post Storm Advisory

Posted on October 30, 2012 by John Bailey

WPCNR CITY HALL CIRCUIT. From the Mayor’s Office. October 30,2012:

DUE TO CONTINUED HAZARDS, ALL RESIDENTS ARE ENCOURAGED TO STAY OFF THE ROADS UNLESS ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY AND TO USE EXTREME CAUTION WHEN TRAVELING.

City of White Plains government offices are open for business today.

Garbage is being collected. The Sanitation Department is collecting as per the normal pick up schedule. However, given the number of downed trees and wires some streets may be inaccessible to the sanitation trucks. Every effort will be made to collect garbage and recyclables according to the normal schedule and to reach all residents.

Numerous streets across the City are blocked because of fallen trees and tree limbs. The Department of Public Works has moved 150 – 200 downed trees of various sizes to the road side. Clearing of those trees will begin today. To report a downed tree or tree limb that is blocking the street, call 422-1202.

Downed trees with wires cannot be moved until Con Edison has given the City the OK. Residents are advised to stay away from fallen wires and to treat all downed wire as live until informed otherwise. Te report a downed electrical wire, call the Department of Public Safety at 422-6111.

Trees that fall onto private property cannot be removed by the City of White Plains. Homeowners should contact their insurance company and arrange for a tree removal service.

Please report power outages and check service restoration status with Con Edison by calling 1-800-75-CONED or www.coned.com.

The City of White Plains has opened a shelter for White Plains residents at Post Road Elementary School, located at 175 West Post Road. Please enter the school from the Soundview Avenue entrance.

City residents may park vehicles in two City garages without charge overnight until Wednesday morning, October 31 at 8:00 AM in either the Hamilton-Main or Chester-Maple Garages. All other garages, parking lots and on-street parking will be under normal enforcement rules.

City of White Plains STORM HOTLINE information 422-5150; Spanish speaking 422-5160.

Sewage in the Hudson

Posted on October 30, 2012 by John Bailey

WPCNR HEALTH ADVISORY. October 30, 2012:

The Westchester County Department of Health is advising people who use the Hudson River waters to avoid direct contact with the water until further notice along the Westchester shoreline. This advisory is due to flooding-related shutdowns at one waste water treatment plant and two waste water pumping stations along the river that have resulted in raw and partially treated sewage entering the Hudson River.

As a precaution, the Westchester County Department of Environmental Facilities shut down the Crotonville Pump Station at 10:05 a.m. today due to tidal flooding. As a result, untreated sewage is entering the Hudson River via the Croton River on the Croton-Ossining border until further notice.

At 10:50 p.m. last night, the North Yonkers pump station became flooded and its pumps went out of service, allowing screened raw sewage to be released to the Hudson River until further notice.

Earlier, at 8:45 p.m., the Department of Environmental Facilities asked Consolidated Edison to cut power to the Yonkers Wastewater Treatment Plant due to flooding in the plant, both to protect equipment and for the safety of employees. As a result, partially treated sewage has been released into the river since then.

All relevant authorities have been notified. Further notifications will be made when the plants return to service.

Stay in Homes, Mayor Warns– Downtown hub traffic closed because of debris.

Posted on October 30, 2012 by John Bailey

WPCNR CITY HALL CIRCUIT. October 30,2012:

Mayor Tom Roach of White Plains is in the process of updating residents with a recorded announcement, received at 12:10 this afternoon.

The Mayor reports the newest Con Edison count of White Plains customers without power is 11,892 — more than half of all Con Ed customers in the city, and the Mayor notes that half of Westchester County Con Ed customers are without power.

The Mayor said Renaissance Plaza, Hamilton Avenue and Main Street in the center of the downtown are closed due to falling debris from the 5 Rennaissance Plaza tower/ The closures may be impeding crosstown traffic on Main Street and Hamilton.

He asked residents to stay off the streets, and that so far there have been no fatalities or injuries to persons in the city as a result of the storm, “and we want to keep it that way.”

The Mayor said the Post Road school is open as a shelter, where there are cots and food available, entry is from the Sterling Avenue side.

For updates, the Mayor encouraged residents to call 422-5150. He asked residents to remain in their homes, that city hall has had reports of trees still falling around town and conditions remain dangerous. He said de-energized wires could become re-energized and urged caution.

Karen Pasquale Assistant to the Mayor issued this statement to WPCNR: “There are road blockages and impairments across the City. Every neighborhood in the City has felt the impacts of this storm. “

Paula Piekos who has been driving around the southern part of town reports that as of 12-30 P.M. there appear to be no traffic signals functioning above Rosedale Avenue on up Mamaroneck Avenue. She reports Rosedale is closed at Mamaroneck Avenue and at North Street. Ridgeway is closed between Old Mamaroneck Road and Mamaroneck, and Gedney Way is closed between Old Mamaroneck Road and Mamaroneck Avenue. Driving down Homeside Lane to Sammis Lane to return to the Rocky Dell area, she observed devasting tree damage to homes and property.

11,892 Customers Without Electricity in WP– 181,290 Countywide

Posted on October 30, 2012 by John Bailey

WPCNR THE POWER NEWS. OCTOBER 30,2012 UPDATED 12:10 NOON:

As expected the number of power outages throughout the metropolitan area reported to Consolidated Edison has grown overnight as more reports are coming in.

As of 12:10 PM, Mayor Thomas Roach reports Consolidated Edison real time count of outages shows 11,892 OF 23,854 TOTAL White Plains customers are powerless, but this means hundreds,thousands more are without power because a customer represents one account. In Westchester County, now at 12 noon, more than half of all Westchester Con Ed customers are without power, 181,290 of 348,198 total customers. White Plains roads are blocked with trees, and homes without power await Con Edison to shut off power so city crews can clear the roads, from information supplied WPCNR from motorists driving the southend of town at 10 A.M.

Hardest hit power outage areas ac of 10 AM were Yonkers (21,000 customers out); Mount Vernon (17,927 cutomers powerless), 7,506 out in Port Chester, 19,328 out in New Rochelle, in addition to White Plains (10,455) and Greenburgh(9,256)

Here is the latest Con Edision totals of powerless as of 10 A.M.:

Customers Out Total Customers Restoration

Ardsley Village	1,548	1,786	Pending
Bedford town	795	1,018	Pending
Briarcliff Manor village	1,982	2,964	Pending
Briarcliff Ossining	0	0	Pending
Bronxville village	1,235	2,529	Pending
Buchanan village	380	1,010	Pending
Cortlandt town	4,306	12,295	Pending
Croton-on-Hudson village	2,440	3,629	Pending
Dobbs Ferry village	1,841	4,153	Pending
Eastchester town	3,808	7,900	Pending
Elmsford village	399	2,104	Pending
Greenburgh town	9,250	18,736	Pending
Harrison village	5,558	9,470	Pending
Hastings-on-Hudson village	1,981	3,436	Pending
Irvington village	1,308	2,632	Pending
Larchmont village	1,388	1,983	Pending
Mamaroneck town	3,540	5,259	Pending
Mamaroneck village	4,058	8,704	Pending
Mount Kisco (Town of Bedford)	0	0	Pending
Mount Kisco (Town of New Castle)	0	0	Pending
Mount Kisco village	2,182	5,075	Pending
Mount Pleasant town	6,359	8,783	Pending
Mount Vernon city	17,927	29,297	Pending
New Castle town	4,923	6,574	Pending
New Rochelle city	19,328	28,958	Pending
North Castle town	4,148	4,894	Pending
North Pelham	610	2,071	Pending
Ossining town	675	2,307	Pending
Ossining village	4,753	8,980	Pending
Peekskill city	3,023	10,239	Pending
Pelham Manor village	1,414	2,051	Pending
Pelham village	454	760	Pending
Pleasantville village	774	3,338	Pending
Port Chester village	7,504	10,254	Pending
Rye Brook village	2,821	3,720	Pending
Rye city	4,281	6,070	Pending
Rye town	0	0	Pending
Scarsdale village	4,050	6,025	Pending
Sleepy Hollow	1,595	3,515	Pending
Somers town	0	0	Pending
Tarrytown village	2,259	5,217	Pending
Tuckahoe village	1,605	2,867	Pending
White Plains city	10,455	23,854	Pending
Yonkers city	20,971	75,568	Pending
Yorktown town	6,124	8,173	Pending

650,000 wITHOUT pOWER IN METROPOLITAN AREA

Posted on October 30, 2012 by John Bailey

WPCNR THE POWER NEWS. From Con Edison. October 30, 2012–issued 1 A.M. E.D.T.:

More than 650,000 customers in New York City and Westchester County lost electrical power due to Hurricane Sandy, Con Edison said early today.

“This is the largest storm-related outage in our history,” said Con Edison Senior Vice President for Electric Operations John Miksad. The previous record was more than 200,000 customers affected by Hurricane Irene in 2011.

Miksad cautioned crews must assess damage prior making to repairs, but early today low-lying areas of New York City and Westchester County remained under water.

Challenges include, for example, more than 200 wires down on Staten Island. In Westchester County, more than 180 roads are closed.

Restoring electrical service to underground equipment demands cleaning all components of sea water, drying and testing to make it safe to restore power.

Here are the latest outages as of 1 a.m.Tuesday:

Manhattan: 193,000 customers
Westchester County: 158,000
Queens: 74,000
Brooklyn: 71,000
Staten Island: 76,000
Bronx: 38,000

Safety for customers and Con Edison employees is the company’s No. 1 priority.

Con Edison restores lines that will return power to the most customers as quickly as possible, and then moves on to restore small groups and individual customers who are still without power.

To report outages, Customers can report downed power lines, outages, and check service restoration status by computer or mobile device at www.conEd.com. They also can call 1-800-75-CONED (1-800-752-6633). When reporting an outage, it is helpful if customers have their Con Edison account number available, if possible, and report whether their neighbors also have lost power. Customers who report outages will be called by Con Edison with their estimated restoration times as they become available.

For instructions on how to report an outage, click here: http://bcove.me/6sx1yox5

Con Edison offers the following safety tips:

If you see downed electrical wires, do not go near them. Treat all downed wires as if they are live. Never attempt to move or touch them with any object. Be mindful that downed wires can be hidden from view by tree limbs, leaves or water.
Report all downed wires to Con Edison and your local police department immediately. If a power line falls on your car while you’re in it, stay inside the vehicle and wait for emergency personnel.
If your power goes out, turn off all lights and appliances to prevent overloaded circuits when power is restored.
Check to make sure your flashlights and any battery-operated radios are working. Also, make sure you have a supply of extra batteries. Weather updates and news on power outages can be heard on most local radio and television stations.
Avoid opening your freezer to see if food is still frozen. Every time you open the door, room-temperature air enters and speeds the thawing process. Most fully loaded freezers will keep food frozen for approximately 36 to 48 hours; half-full freezers will keep food frozen for approximately 24 hours.