NYSEG, a subsidiary of AVANGRID Inc., at 7am this morning, released its daily restoration plan for work that will be completed on Friday August 7, 2020. The plan includes a number of highlights including crews that will be provided to local municipalities, critical facility prioritization and additional restoration work. NYSEG continues to obtain additional resources from throughout the country and Canada. Currently, approximately 38,000 customers out of the total 124,361 customers impacted are without power in the company’s Brewster division, which includes Dutchess, Putnam, and Westchester counties. The company previously announced that it expects that 95% of customers will have power restored by 11 p.m. on Monday.
Details of Friday’s work plan include:
Restoration Work: The company was able to restore all transmission lines that contributed to customer outages on Thursday, paving the way for restoration efforts to increase on the company’s distribution network, the system that supplies power directly to customers. While seven transmission lines remain out of service in the division, they do not contribute to any customer outages. However, the company will begin work to restore the seven lines currently out to bolster reliability of the transmission system and prevent widespread outages.
Restoration crews will focus particular attention to the distribution system in Dutchess County today as this portion of the system is sufficiently repaired to enable this work. This comes after crews on Thursday were able to make repairs to the backbone of the system in the central and southern portions of the service area. Specific areas of focus on Friday will include the Towns of: 10 Mile River, Amenia, Beekman, Dover and Pawling. Goldens Bridge in Westchester County will also remain a focus.
In other areas of the three-county division, crews will be working to repair the remaining 290 broken poles, which will allow for new wire to be strung. The company announced that all circuits that are assigned a crew for restoration work today will provide updated estimated times of restoration (ETRs) as work progresses throughout the day.
Critical Facilities: The company will also continue to prioritize restorations of the list of critical facilities supplied by municipalities. Restoring power to these locations has been a priority for the company since the start of the event. The company continues to work to address county and town priorities during the restoration period.
Crew Information: In an effort to continue aiding municipalities hit hard by the storm, NYSEG will fulfill the following make safe crew requests to assist municipalities road and hazard clearing efforts directly:
• Putnam County (19), Towns in Westchester County (4), Town of Bedford (2), Town of Dover (1), Dutchess County (1). All other municipalities have released their assigned crews back to the company.
In addition to the make safe crews supplied to municipalities, the company announced that 45% of crews on Friday will be working in the northern Putnam and Dutchess areas, 30% will be in Westchester County and 25% will be in central and southern Putnam County. As a result of the company’s efforts to expand its field resources, the company also stated that they will be able to assign at least one crew to begin restoration work on every circuit that serves 100 customers or more. As a result, the company expects to make significant progress on Friday, allowing crews to focus their attention on smaller pockets of customers that suffered extensive damage.
COVID-19: Recognizing that many residents are currently home due to the ongoing COVID-19 situation, for everyone’s safety, the company asks customers to observe a six-foot social distance if they must be near workers and always remain outside the work zone. Allowing crews to remain uninterrupted and focused on their work enables workers to determine damage and make repairs more quickly and safely.
NYSEG will continue to provide updates throughout the event to the general public on the company’s social media channels (Facebook and Twitter). The company also offers customers the following reminders to prepare for the storm and stay safe if power outages do occur.
Outage Information:
- Sign up for Outage Alerts to receive updates automatically by phone, text, or e-mail as the company updates the status of the restoration process in their area. Customers can sign up for outage alerts by visiting here for NYSEG.
- Customers can use the new NYSEG mobile app to report and check the status of outages. To download the application, customers should search “AVANGRID” in the Apple or Android app stores and select “NYSEG.” The application is free to download.
Stay Away From Downed Wires:
- Stay at least 30 feet from a downed power line.
- If a downed wire comes in contact with your vehicle, stay inside and wait for help. If you must get out because of fire or other danger, jump clear of the vehicle to avoid any contact with the vehicle and the ground at the same time. Land with your feet together and hop with feet together or shuffle away; don’t run or stride.
- NYSEG customers should call 1.800.572.1131 to report downed power lines or other hazardous situations.
During a Power Interruption:
- Contact neighbors to see if their power is off. A loss of power may be the result of a blown fuse or a tripped circuit breaker.
- To report a power interruption, contact NYSEG at 1.800.572.1131.
- Keep refrigerators and freezers closed as much as possible. Most food will last 24 hours if you minimize the opening of refrigerator and freezer doors.
Power Restoration Priorities:
• Assess the damage to the electricity delivery system.
• Develop a detailed restoration plan.
• Make repairs as quickly as possible.
For additional information, including storm preparation tips, storm safety information, generator safety information, restoration priorities and emergency resources, visit Outage Central at NYSEG.com and on the company’s social media pages:
- Facebook: @NYSEandG
- Twitter: @NYSEandG