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Isaias Power Outage Update: Estimated Restoration Times Issued; LI Communities Most Affected

Utility crews from PSEG Long Island have worked around the clock to restore power to hundreds of thousands of customers, though nearly 250,000 are still in the dark days after Tropical Storm Isaias.

Nearly 250,000 Long Islanders remain without power in the wake of Tropical Storm Isaias.

Nearly 250,000 Long Islanders remain without power in the wake of Tropical Storm Isaias.

Photo Credit: PSEG Long Island

PSEG said that approximately 420,000 customers were impacted by the storm, though 85 percent should have power restored by the end of the day on Friday, Aug. 7, according to the company.

As of 10:15 a.m. on Thursday, Aug. 6, PSEG was still working to repair 12,088 reported outages, which were impacting 246,646 of its 1,162,375 customers.

In Suffolk, 143,629 customers were still without power, while 101,915 in Nassau were reporting outages. An additional 1,102 in the Rockaway Peninsula were also in the dark.

PSEG President Daniel Eichorn said on Wednesday that it could be six or seven days for some customers as crews and support staff work around the clock to make repairs following the storm.

In Suffolk, outage numbers are as follows:

  • Brookhaven: 34,273;
  • Huntington: 32,208;
  • Islip: 27,207;
  • Smithtown: 20,909;
  • Babylon: 20,759;
  • Southampton: 2,412;
  • Southold: 2,402;
  • East Hampton: 733;
  • Shelter Island: 180.

In Nassau, outage numbers are as follows:

  • Oyster Bay: 45,321;
  • Hempstead: 30,497;
  • North Hempstead: 26,097.

"Please note that due to the large number of off-island crews brought into the service area on Monday and Tuesday, the work is getting done quicker than we can update the numbers on the website," PSEG officials said.

"Crews have cleared fallen limbs or trees from 500 locations. More than 2,000 line-workers, tree trimmers and other personnel are working around the clock, in 16-hour shifts until every customer is restored.”

In response to the communications failures in the wake of the tropical storm, Nassau County Executive Laura Curran said that she is “demanding answers” from PSEG, echoing the words of New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

Curran said that she wants PSEG to announce plans for a post-recovery review of communications protocols and devise backup plans.

“I am deeply concerned by PSEG Long Island’s widespread communications failures during and in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Isaias,” she wrote to Eichhorn. “By all accounts these failures extend to every portion of Nassau County, leaving many ratepayers in the dark, struggling to find answers.

“At this time my efforts are squarely focused on making sure residents are getting reconnected to the power grid and receiving the vital information they need to make critical decisions regarding the health, safety and welfare of their families.

Curran continued: “A repeat of the same mistakes is simply unacceptable. These problems should have been corrected after Superstorm Sandy, not faced again with Isaias.” 

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