NYSEG and RGE Continue Response Effort As Strong Winds Impacted Service Areas Overnight and During Early Morning Hours - 6:00 a.m.

Crews today will continue to make safe downed wires and trees, perform restoration work, and conduct full damage assessment

BINGHAMTON, NY — November 16, 2020, 6:00 a.m. — NYSEG and RG&E crews are responding as strong winds and thunderstorms continue to disrupt service to thousands of customers across the state. Currently there are 20,321 NYSEG customers and 529 RG&E customers without power of the approximately 54,000 and 22,000 impacted respectively. The hardest hit areas include NYSEG’s Lancaster (12,924 customers) and Brewster (5,348) Divisions. These impacted areas include Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Erie, Dutchess, Putnam, and Westchester counties.

The weather event that brought strong winds and thunderstorms across the state yesterday morning and continued overnight and remains active in portions of the service area. Crews worked through the overnight to clear downed wires and trees, make safe work sites, and restore power to impacted customers.

The strong winds remaining active during the overnight period prevented crews from performing certain restoration work, such as using bucket trucks to access the top of the utility poles. However, crews were able to perform critical restoration work, such as replacing broken poles, and readying the site with new equipment for when the wind speeds slowed, and the work could be safely performed.

Daily Work Plan
Today, the company will conduct damage assessments and identify the extent of the damage caused by the weather event and crews will continue to make safe roads, and clear debris, fallen trees or other hazards. Crews were repositioned throughout the state overnight to be able to perform work in the most significantly impacted areas.

The company continues to coordinate its response effort with state and local emergency management officials to clear roads of fallen trees and hazards and restore power service to critical facilities, such as hospitals and nursing homes.

Safety Tips
The companies also remind the public to stay away from downed wires and report any downed wires to NYSEG at 800.572.1131 or RG&E at 800.743.1701. Customers should not attempt to move wires or fallen trees until the area is deemed safe by professionals. It is possible that a live wire be tangled into a fallen tree, which could injure someone trying to remove the fallen debris.

Recognizing that many residents are currently home due to the ongoing COVID-19 situation, for everyone’s safety, the company asks customers to observe a six-foot social distance if they must be near workers and always remain outside the work zone. Allowing crews to remain uninterrupted and focused on their work enables workers to determine damage and make repairs more quickly.

NYSEG and RG&E will continue to provide updates throughout the event to the general public on the companies’ social media channels (Facebook and Twitter). The companies also offer customers the following reminders to prepare for the storm and stay safe if power outages do occur.

Outage Information

  • Sign up for Outage Alerts to receive updates automatically by phone, text, or email as the company updates the status of the restoration process in their area. Customers can sign up for outage alerts by visiting here for NYSEG and here for RG&E.
  • You can use our new mobile app to report and check the status of outages. To download the application, customers should search “AVANGRID” in the Apple or Android app stores and select “NYSEG” or “RG&E”. The application is free to download. 

Stay Away From Downed Wires

  • Stay at least 30 feet from a downed power line.
  • If a downed wire comes in contact with your vehicle, stay inside and wait for help. If you must get out because of fire or other danger, jump clear of the vehicle to avoid any contact with the vehicle and the ground at the same time. Land with your feet together and hop with feet together or shuffle away; don’t run or stride.
  • NYSEG customers should call 800.572.1131 and RG&E customers should call 800.743.1701 to report downed power lines or other hazardous situations.

During a Power Interruption

  • Contact neighbors to see if their power is off. A loss of power may be the result of a blown fuse or a tripped circuit breaker.
  • To report a power interruption, contact NYSEG at 800.572.1131 or RG&E at 800.743.1701.
  • Keep refrigerators and freezers closed as much as possible. Most food will last 24 hours if you minimize the opening of refrigerator and freezer doors.

Power Restoration Priorities
The companies’ first priorities are to respond to reports of downed power lines to keep the public safe. NYSEG customers are asked to call 800.572.1131 and RG&E customers are asked to call at 800.743.1701 to report downed wires. Once this vital public safety work is complete, the company will:

  • Assess the damage to the electricity delivery system.
  • Develop a detailed restoration plan.
  • Make repairs as quickly as possible.

For additional information, including storm preparation tips, storm safety information, generator safety information, restoration priorities and emergency resources, visit Outage Central at NYSEG.com or RGE.com and on the company’s social media pages:

  • Facebook: @NYSEandG
  • Twitter: @NYSEandG
  • Facebook: @RochGandE
  • Twitter: @RGandE

NYSEG and RG&E are subsidiaries of AVANGRID Inc.

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About NYSEG: New York State Electric & Gas Corporation (NYSEG) is a subsidiary of AVANGRID, Inc. Established in 1852, NYSEG operates approximately 35,000 miles of electric distribution lines and 4,500 miles of electric transmission lines across more than 40% of upstate New York. It also operates more than 8,150 miles of natural gas distribution pipelines and 20 miles of gas transmission pipelines. It serves approximately 894,000 electricity customers and 266,000 natural gas customers. For more information, visit nyseg.com. 

About RG&E: Rochester Gas and Electric Corporation (RG&E) is a subsidiary of AVANGRID, Inc. Established in 1848, RG&E operates approximately 8,800 miles of electric distribution lines and 1,100 miles of electric transmission lines. It also operates approximately 10,600 miles of natural gas distribution pipelines and 105 miles of gas transmission pipelines. It serves approximately 378,500 electricity customers and 313,000 natural gas customers in a nine-county region in New York surrounding the City of Rochester. For more information, visit rge.com. 

About AVANGRID: AVANGRID, Inc. (NYSE: AGR) is a leading, sustainable energy company with approximately $36 billion in assets and operations in 24 U.S. states. With headquarters in Orange, Connecticut, AVANGRID has two primary lines of business: Avangrid Networks and Avangrid Renewables. Avangrid Networks owns eight electric and natural gas utilities, serving more than 3.3 million customers in New York and New England. Avangrid Renewables owns and operates a portfolio of renewable energy generation facilities across the United States. AVANGRID employs approximately 6,600 people. AVANGRID supports the U.N.’s Sustainable Development Goals and was named among the World’s Most Ethical Companies in 2019 and 2020 by the Ethisphere Institute. For more information, visit avangrid.com

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