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Con Edison Mobilized for Nor'easter # 4; Urges Safety around Downed Wires

  • Con Edison Media Relations

  • New York – March 21, 2018 -- 12:30 PM

Con Edison’s crews, along with mutual aid workers who have been helping with permanent repairs after this month’s prior storms, are ready to address any new outages arising from March nor’easter # 4.

The fourth storm is arriving with the wet snow that brings down branches and trees. The company again is emphasizing safety and avoiding downed wires. Safety remains the number one priority throughout the storm recovery effort, so adults should remember to advise children and others at risk to be extra careful, and to safeguard pets as well.

A group of crew members in yellow safety vests are standing near a snow-covered slope, assessing site conditions.

The storm is expected to drop six to 15 inches of wet snow in New York City and Westchester County, with gusty northeasterly winds of up to 50 MPH predicted to peak during the next 24 hours. Winds at that level will result in downed branches and outages.

The company has 2,000 of its own field and support employees working on system maintenance and restorations. Currently, 450 mutual aid field personnel are available, with another 130 arriving by tomorrow.

Con Edison crews will do damage assessment immediately after the storm subsides, with the goal of restoring any critical emergency service facilities first, and then proceeding to restorations that will get the greatest number of customers back online as quickly as possible. Key restorations also will be underway and ongoing even as damage assessment is conducted.

Many mutual aid crews have been continuing to help Con Edison’s crews rebuild the electrical system after more than 200,000 customers lost power during the devastating March 2 and March 7 nor’easters. Together, the two storms caused more outages in Westchester than Hurricane Irene did in August 2011.

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.

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 here to stay on top of outages and power problems by signing up for text notifications.

Con Edison offers the following storm tips:

  • Do not go near downed wires because they could be live. 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.
  • 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, 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.