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Con Edison Winter Storm Warning: Stay Away From Downed Wires

  • Con Edison Media Relations

  • New York City – February 07, 2021 -- 10:00 AM

More snow is on the way, and Con Edison is asking everyone in New York City and Westchester to be on the alert for any downed wires resulting from weakened tree limbs coming down on power lines.

Con Edison has extra crews working. In the event of outages, the company will respond, supported by underground and overhead crews, damage assessors, and site safety personnel, along with customer service operations and the Con Edison teams that support those functions.

Con Edison urges members of the public to stay away from all downed lines. Those lines could be live. Con Edison also may station site safety personnel near downed wires, sometimes in unmarked vehicles, to protect the public.

Reporting an outage

Customers also can report outages and check service restoration status at conEd.com/reportoutage, or with Con Edison’s mobile app for iOS or Android devices, or by calling 1-800-75-CONED (1-800-752-6633). Customers can sign up for text alerts at coned.com/text.

Customers who report outages will receive updates from Con Edison with their estimated restoration times as they become available. Information on outages and restoration times also is available at the Con Edison outage map.

Restoring power

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 who are without power.

Staying safe

Con Edison personnel continue to practice protocols to keep everyone safe from the coronavirus. Con Edison is following the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines during the health emergency.

Con Edison offers the following storm tips to customers to help weather the possible effects of a storm:

  • Do not go near downed electrical wires. Treat all downed wires as if they are 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 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.
  • Members of the public also should avoid transformers that are brought to the ground. The transformers are gray metal drums attached to the wires and poles.
  • 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, electric circuits may overload.
  • Charge your cellphones and other devices while you have power.
  • Follow the manufacturer’s instructions for installing and using a portable generator. Never plug a generator into a wall unit, use it indoors, or set it up outdoors near open home windows or air-handling vents.
  • Make sure your flashlights, radios and televisions are working. 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.
  • For more storm tips and preparation, go to www.conEd.com

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