Orange & Rockland: Most To Have Power By Midnight
NEW CITY, NY (WCBS 880) - New City homeowners Joe Bricks and Kirk Reilly were explaining the misery of living on generator power to WCBS 880 reporter Marla Diamond, when suddenly the power came back.
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Bricks and Reilly were among the 90 percent of Orange & Rockland utility customers who were promised power by midnight.
Crews were driving around Rockland County on Thursday with California and Indiana license plates, just one sign of the effort O&R is putting into the complicated, days-long task of restoring power.
"Massive destruction up here," Rockland County legislator Ed Day told Diamond. "I've driven around here. It's just unbelievable.
He is not thrilled with O&R's response. After all, 10 percent of its customers might not have power restored until Sunday, perhaps not even until next week. The freak snowstorm was on Saturday.
"You're supposed to be looking at things like this. There's supposed to be a comprehensive effort. Clearly, the fact of trees falling down, while it was a lot this time, is not an unusual circumstance in a place like Rockland County," said Day.
While power is out, the utility has some recommendations:
•Always assume downed power lines are energized and extremely dangerous. Keep a distance of at least 50 feet away from them and call O&R at 1-877-434-4100.
•Do not try to use a gas oven or range to heat a room or use grills indoors. These appliances will deplete oxygen from the air, resulting in possible carbon monoxide poisoning.
To see the Orange & Rockland outage map, click HERE.
How do you feel Orange & Rockland has responded to the freak October snowstorm? Sound off in the comments section below.
