PEARL RIVER – Mother Nature is expected to do it to us again, dump heavy rain and strong winds on the region.
As a result, Orange and Rockland Utilities has declared a Storm Watch as a strong Halloween Day weather system packing high, gusty winds, heavy rain and isolated thunderstorms is expected to pound the region Thursday evening overnight into Friday morning.
Weather forecasters expect O&R’s service area to get .75 – 2 inches of rain from early Thursday evening through the night into Friday morning with some scattered thunderstorms possible.
In addition for that period, winds are expected to be sustained at 25 mph with gusts overnight Thursday night into Friday morning of 35 to as much as 50 mph. The storm is expected to subside after 8 a.m. Friday
Storm activity, particularly the high winds predicted for late Thursday and early Friday, have the potential to cause power line damage and electric service interruptions. The already rain-saturated ground and a remaining partial canopy of leaves on the trees could further intensify concerns about tree-damage. O&R crews will be ready to respond to those events as needed.
Company and contractor overhead line crews and tree removal crews are ramping up for a high-volume outage response to the storm, as are damage assessment, site safety, customer service operations and the wide array of O&R teams that support those functions. O&R also has hired an extra 50 mutual aid overhead line technicians to supplement its field teams.
To prepare for the severe weather, O&R electric and gas crews are securing active work sites through the day Thursday to prevent wind and water damage from the coming storm.
The following video describes the typical storm repair and power restoration process: https://youtu.be/JeGU8ID4_m0
Customers are reminded to consider the poor weather conditions expected and the potential for tree and power line damage when making plans for trick-or-treating or other outdoor activities scheduled for children on Thursday and Friday.
