PEARL RIVER – Orange and Rockland Utilities is repairing storm damage and restoring electric service today to approximately 280 customers at eight different locations whose power was knocked out by the high winds and heavy rains associated with the remnants of Tropical Storm Zeta.
Since 6 p.m. yesterday, O&R has restored electric service to approximately 7,000 customers whose power was knocked out by storm activity.
O&R’s full complement of company and contractor overhead line technicians and tree removal experts are ready to expedite system repairs and electric service restoration as needed for customers whose power has been or could be knocked out today by the high gusty winds and heavy rains still pummeling the region.
Damage assessment, site safety, customer service operations and the wide array of O&R teams that support those functions also are ready to aid in service restoration efforts. In addition, O&R has hired 200 more contractor overhead line technicians to help make repairs as needed, more than doubling O&R’s normal electric emergency field response contingent.
High winds and heavy rains can cause power line damage and electric service interruptions. Of particular concern in this storm are trees with nearly full canopies of leaves that provide extra strain on branches and trunks in high winds and snow, and rain-saturated ground that provides less stable footing for the roots that anchor trees.
The forecast for today calls for continued rain, and snow, perhaps an inch, with winds sustained 10-25 mph, gusting to 30 mph.
The following video describes the typical storm repair and power restoration process: https://youtu.be/JeGU8ID4_m0
