Con Edison Mobilizing Crews for Response to Spring Storms

Con Edison crews are preparing to respond to any outages that occur as thunderstorms and powerful wind gusts hit the New York City area starting Thursday.

The company reminds customers to take safety precautions and avoid any downed power lines.

Con Edison personnel responding to the event have been instructed to practice social distancing with each other and members of the public in order to keep everyone safe from the coronavirus. Con Edison is following the U.S. Centers for Disease Control guidelines during the health emergency.

The company has arranged for 20 additional contractor workers to assist Con Edison’s field crews in repairing damaged overhead equipment and get customers back in service. All personnel responding to outages will remain focused on maintaining safe, reliable service while protecting their families, customers and themselves.

Customers can report outages and check service restoration status at www.conEd.com/reportoutage, or with our mobile app for iOS or Android devices, or by calling 1-800-75-CONED (1-800-752-6633). When calling, customers should report whether their neighbors also have lost power.

Strong winds can push trees and branches into overhead power lines and bring those lines down, causing customers to lose service. The storm is also expected to bring lightning, which can strike the electrical delivery equipment or trees.

Customers who report outages will be called by Con Edison with their estimated restoration times as they become available.

Depending on the severity of storm damage, crews will give priority to restoring service lines that will provide power to the most customers as quickly as possible, then move on to restore smaller groups and individual customers.

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 them or touch them with your hands or any object. Be mindful that downed wires can be hidden from view by 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.
• Check to make sure your flashlights and any battery-operated radios are in working order. Make sure you have a supply of extra batteries.
• Weather updates and news on restorations of electrical service can be heard on most local radio and television stations.

Customers can follow Con Edison on Twitter or like us on Facebook for general outage updates, safety tips and storm preparation information. For more tips on storm preparation, go to www.conEd.com. The company is in contact with New York City Emergency Management and the Westchester County Department of Emergency Services to coordinate storm response if needed.