PSEG Long Island was prepared for the heavy snow and hazardous winds forecasted for Dec. 16 afternoon through the morning of Dec. 17. These conditions brought down large trees, branches, and wires across Long Island and the Rockaways, causing outages.
As of Dec. 17, 5.15 a.m., PSEG Long Island restored power to more than 9000 customers. At 6 a.m., 2261 of the utility's approximately 1.1 million customers across Long Island and the Rockaways were without service.
Electric service crews worked through the night and were expected to continue working in difficult conditions to restore outages safely and as quickly as possible. The utility said as damage assessment continued, restoration times would be refined.
PSEG Long Island has additional personnel, including tree and line crews, to repair damage and restore outages. More than 1300 line workers, tree trimmers, surveyors, and other utility personnel were onsite to address outages.
While light snow normally doesn't pose a serious problem, high winds and heavy snow or ice on lines and trees can increase the possibility of downed wires and power outages. These conditions also make it difficult for crews to get around. The utility reminded customers that its crews would be unable to work in bucket trucks to make repairs until the winds had returned to non-hazardous levels.
"PSEG Long Island is closely tracking the progress of this significant weather front, and we are hard at work making all necessary preparations to respond to the potential impact of the high winds and snow accumulations," John O'Connell, vice president of transmission and distribution at PSEG Long Island, had said prior to the storm. "We are bringing in mutual aid crews to to work alongside our highly trained line personnel, and our workforce is performing system checks and logistics checks to ensure the availability of critical materials, fuel, and other supplies."
In response to the COVID-19 outbreak, PSEG Long Island has adapted its storm and safety procedures to follow public health guidelines and industry best practices. The utility requested customers to remain in their homes while crews worked nearby. If customers had to speak with crews, they were asked to practice responsible social distancing and remain at least 6 ft away to ensure the health of everyone involved.
Additionally, PSEG Long Island launched a new outage communications process. Customers contacting the Call Center early in the storm restoration received an 'Assessing Conditions' message, rather than an estimated time of restoration (ETR). This change allowed crews to assess storm impact before issuing ETRs, thereby increasing the accuracy of the ETR information being provided.
For more information on this new process, visit here.
