Fay on the Way: Con Edison Prepares for Storm; Urges Customers to Take Safety Precautions
Tropical Storm Fay’s on the way, and Con Edison crews are preparing to respond to any outages that may occur today or this evening due to severe rain and windstorms forecasted for New York City and Westchester County. The company reminds customers to take safety precautions and avoid any downed lines.
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.
Customers who report outages will receive updates from Con Edison with their estimated restoration times as they become available.
Strong winds can push trees and branches into overhead power lines and bring those lines down, causing customers to lose service.
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.
Con Edison offers the following safety tips:
- If you see downed 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 all downed wires to Con Edison and your local police department immediately. If an overhead 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 close contact with New York City Emergency Management and the Westchester County Department of Emergency Services to coordinate storm response if needed.