The estimated 171,958 Westchester County Con Edison customers still without power on Wednesday at 3:30 p.m. may be in the dark for several more days, officials said this afternoon.
On a press conference call, John Miksad, senior vice president of electric operations for Con Edison, said the company is distributing its resources "to get the most bang for the buck."
In the county, "I would think it would be the last customers in a week or better kind of range," he stated in response to a reporter's inquiry about restoration times.
But he added later that a 10-day wait time could be "in the ball park" for area residents.
"We are talking about another storm of the century a year after the last storm of the century," Miksad reiterated.
To help expedite service restoration, Con Edison teams are being assisted by 1,400 external contractors and mutual aid workers from across the country—even as far west as California.
Con Edison will be distributing dry ice in the areas it serves, beginning at 4 p.m. today.
In Westchester County, distribution will take place at Yonkers Raceway (810 Yonkers Ave.). There will also be company personnel on-site to answer residents' questions.
"Instructions for safe handling and disposal of dry ice are printed on the bag for residents who pick up dry ice," Con Edison said in a statement. "Dry ice is frozen carbon dioxide and should be used only in well-ventilated areas. Keep children and pets safely away."
To stay on top, the US needs a leading infrastructure, so please stop the debate and show action. Invest the billions needed, burying the lines will create jobs that are also needed right now and improve all our lives. Where are you, Mr. President? This is kitchen logic simple!
All/most of the trees have been cleared by Highway Dept. where possible. As for those saying we should count our blessings let me say this: For those of us w/ little children and for the elderly, this is not an adventure. It's damn right dangerous. We've been told 10 days, Okay. I'm ready to go for ten days, but I'm keeping ALL of my receipts for food and other provisions, and for every day this goes beyond 10 days, I will be including the receipts in my furture Con Ed billing statements less the money due. Last night the house temp went down to 50 degrees. I don't care about myself, but my kids! And now I'm going to get political: Every time there's a natural disaster anywhere in the world, NYC and environs ALWAYS, ALWAYS respond with manpower, material and money. (who among us didn't donate to the Red Cross post Katrina?) If the rest of the country wants to learn the hard lesson that the tri-State area is the engine that runs the economy of this country, then just keep sitting back watching the pictures of our devestation on the news channels. Message to the rest of the United States of America: SEND UTILITY CREWS NOW! You take NYC out and you'll be taking yourself out.
I also saw two small unmarked white vehicles that had Con Ed workers doing something at the corner of Ridgeway and Albemarle. I asked on of the Con Ed guys how long he thought it would take to fix that particular neighborhood and he say, "Probably about a week." I know that's a guesstimate, but at least it gives a feeling of hope that they aren't abandoned, which is how many of the Colonial Corners residents felt yesterday.
The point is we need to understand that these crude way of accessing power which needs to change. Why do we have hazardous electrical wires tangled in trees again? Hazardous to the works that have to fix it & residents. It's completely archaic and dumb. Stop crying over how much work you have con Ed execs & think outside your pockets and self preservation.
I also want people to know that the gas situation is not as bad on Rte 1 in CT. There really are not long lines there.