Con Edison Crews Restore Customers Affected by Relentless Riley

Con Edison crews have restored power to nearly 50,000 customers affected by Winter Storm Riley, even as strong wind gusts continue to sweep through the area.

The company expects to have substantially completed restorations in Queens by Sunday night. In harder-hit Westchester County, the company projects to have the majority of customers restored Monday and 90 percent restored Tuesday night.

In Westchester, crews have restored power to 24,000 customers, despite hundreds of streets being blocked by debris and fallen trees.

Con Edison reminds members of the public to stay away from downed wires because they may be live.

The company continues its round-the-clock effort to restore service to 70,000 customers still without power. That includes 60,000 in Westchester and 5,700 in Queens, where it has already brought service back for 10,000 customers.

Crews are closing in on having restored power to half of the approximately 120,000 customers affected by Riley, one of the most severe storms to hit the area in recent years. 

The company has arranged for 360 mutual aid workers from as far away as Canada, Texas and Wisconsin to help with the Westchester restoration.

More than 1,000 Con Edison workers are working on the restoration.

Crews give priority to repairs that will provide power to the most customers and to critical facilities, such as hospitals, municipal pumping stations and emergency response stations. Then they move on and make repairs to restore smaller groups and individual customers.

Customers can report downed power lines, outages and check service restoration status at www.conEd.com or by calling 1-800-75-CONED (1-800-752-6633). 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 report outages will be called by Con Edison with their estimated restoration times as they become available.

Con Edison offers a number of mobile solutions so you can manage your accounts, report and check the status of an outage, learn energy-saving tips, and more. Text REG to OUTAGE (688243) to sign up for text notifications, and follow the prompts. You will need to enter your Con Edison account number to complete the registration process. Once you've registered, you will not need your account number to report or check the status of a power problem. Or visit us to stay on top of outages and power problems by signing up for text notifications.

Con Edison offers the following storm tips:

• If you see downed electrical wires, do not go near them. Never attempt to move them or touch them with any object. Be mindful that downed wires can be hidden from view by snow, tree limbs, leaves or water. Always stay away from downed power lines because they could be live.
• Report 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, disconnect or turn off appliances that would otherwise turn on automatically when service is restored. If several appliances start up at once, the electric circuits may overload.
• Make sure your flashlights and any battery-operated radios or televisions are working. Have a supply of extra batteries. Weather updates and news on electrical service can be heard on local radio and television stations.
• For more storm tips and preparation, go to Con Edison storm safety.

Customers can follow Con Edison on Twitter or like us on Facebook for general outage updates, safety tips and storm preparation information.