Storm Update: Election Day
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Some progress was made on November 5th in restoring power to Scarsdale homes and schools. All seven schools are powered up and open and Con Edison reports that they restored power to 912 customers in Scarsdale. However the counts from the utility are suspect as I know from personal experience that many homes were removed from the outage list last night – even though no power was restored. If your power is still out, go to the Con Ed site and make sure your complaint remains active – if not, re-enter your address. http://www.coned.com/
According to Con Ed, as of Tuesday morning, 49% of Scarsdale customers remain without power. Scarsdale10583 received a list of outages for all of the 45 towns and villages in Westchester County served by Con Edison. What’s remarkable is that Scarsdale’s percentage of restored customers is third from the bottom of the list of the 45 locations shown. Only New Castle with 55% out of power and North Castle with 50% out trail Scarsdale’s 49%. Why our service is so abysmal will undoubtedly be a subject for discussion in the months and years to come.
As far as we know, Con Edison is promising that most customers will be restored by Friday night November 9 – with everyone back on line by Sunday November 11. Except for those two deadlines, they have supplied little information about how the work will be staged and what areas will come back sooner.
To add insult to injury, a Scarsdale10583 reader sent it the following about Con Edison: “Con Edison released a quarterly earnings report Monday night at 8:30 pm. tonight at 8:30 Monday night. "Consolidated Edison Inc.'s (ED) third-quarter earnings jumped 15% as the utility company increased its rates, though electric sales slipped.”
If you’re mad as hell and can’t take it anymore, file a complaint with the New York State Public Service Commission:
If you have access to a printer use the following text to draft a letter to the Public Service Commission and send it to the address below or send you complaint via email:
Dear Secretary Brilling,:
I write as a resident of New York State, Westchester County, and the Village of Scarsdale. In every sense of the word, I am powerless.
I am not only without electrical power, but without any power to change the horrific treatment Con Ed has given to the Village of Scarsdale and other Westchester residents following Hurricane Sandy. Just from what I saw on the streets of my community, it is clear that Con Ed was not adequately prepared for the storm, did not allocate sufficient resources to the Village of Scarsdale, assigned Scarsdale a lower priority than other municipalities, did not begin assessing damage in the Village until many days after the storm, and did not communicate accurately any restoration information. The Con Ed outage map was inaccurate. The "Check Status" portion of the Con Ed website provided either no restoration time or a default time over ten days after the storm and over a week after New York City power was restored. Eight days after the storm, 50% of residents remain without power.
These are just a few of the glaring deficiencies obvious to consumers and residents of the Village of Scarsdale. Presumably, other deficiencies are more apparent to your offices or will be determined after investigation. I request that your office begin a full investigation of Con Ed's deficient service to Scarsdale residents and report the results publicly and to me. In those results, please indicate what changes will be made so that Scarsdale residents will receive appropriate priority and service from Con Edison in the future, and what penalties or other disciplinary action will be imposed upon Con Ed.
Respectfully submitted,
[Name]
Secretary to the Commission
Hon. Jaclyn A. Brilling
Secretary to the Commission
New York State Public Service Commission
Empire State Plaza
Agency Building 3Albany, NY 12223-1350
Phone: (518) 474-6530
Fax: (518) 486-6081
Email: [email protected]
Or use the following link to file your complaint online:
http://www.dps.ny.gov/complaints.html
Storm Update: Monday November 5
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Here’s the most up-to-date information we have received on the storm recovery, the election and schools in Scarsdale:
Outages: As of Monday morning, the Village reports that roughly 60% or 3,894 of 6,025 customers in the Village were without power. This is down from 4,509 without power on Sunday, so 705 homes were lit up since yesterday.
Scarsdale has received some of the poorest service around. Statistics from neighboring towns show that a far greater percentage of customers have been restored.
- In Bronxville, 10.6% or 267 of 2529 customers are without power
- In Larchmont 27% or 535 of 1983 customers are without power
- In Mamaroneck 25% or 3545 of 13963 are without power
- In the city of Rye, 48.57% or 2,948 of 6,070 customers are out.
There are five Con Edison crews in town consisting of a single line crew to cut power lines, one crew to clear trees, and three line restoration crews to restore electrical power. The single line crew will be working with Village crews to open the 6 dead end streets still blocked by electrical power lines and downed trees.
Con Edison continues to promise full restoration by Sunday November 11.
Meeting with Mayors and Trustees Tonight: a second information session with Scardale's Mayor Miriam Flisser and Village Trustees will be held tonight at 7 pm in the Scott Room of the Scarsdale Library. Everyone is welcome to attend and pose questions to Village officials.
Gas Shortage: An Edgewood resident reported to Scarsdale10583 that a Con Edison assessor arrived at her home this morning in a black SUV. The woman explained that Con Edison is running out of gas and therefore she was asked to drive her own car. The Con Edison worker also said that gas shortages are limiting the utility’s ability to make repairs. However, according to an email from Scarsdale Village, “County Executive Rob Astorino attended an Emergency Operations Center meeting at the Scarsdale Emergency Operations Center late last night. He stated fuel supplies are adequate and deliveries continue.”
The Election: All eight voting locations will be open tomorrow, Tuesday November 6th from 6am to 9pm. Voting will take place at Edgewood, Fox Meadow, Greenacres, Heathcote and Quaker Ridge elementary schools as well as Crossway Firehouse, the Scarsdale Library and Scarsdale Village Hall. If power is not restored to Edgewood Elementary School, FEMA will bring emergency generators to power the voting machines.
Scarsdale Schools: School is back in session at Scarsdale High School, Fox Meadow, Greenacres, Heathcote and Quaker Ridge. The Village hoped to have power restored to the Scarsdale Middle School and Edgewood by this morning, but Con Edison did not come through so school was cancelled for these sites this morning. School will be open on Tuesday November 6.
Board of Education meeting tonight: A Board of Education meeting is scheduled for Monday night November 5 Board at the High School at 8 p.m. The pre-meeting with Greenacres parents will be at 7:15, as scheduled, also at the High School. At the start of the regular meeting, Board President Liz Guggenheimer and Superintendent McGill will give an update on current developments. The rest of the meeting agenda has been pared back; the education report on Global Education will be re-scheduled at a later date.
The Library: The Scarsdale Public Library is open Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday nights until 9 pm. They now have internet and their online catalogue – and can offer internet access on the libraries computers. However there is no wifi for personal computers.
Storm Update: Power Back by Sunday November 11?
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Mayor Flisser now says that everyone in Scarsdale should have their power back on by Sunday, November 11 -- more than a week from today and almost two weeks after we lost power on Monday October 29. The word on the street is that repair crews are being flown in from California and we should begin to see more activity around town. As power comes back, please email [email protected] and we'll let people know so that they can return home. Some of the major roads have been cleared and the Village has installed temporary generators from the athletic fields at major intersections to power the traffic lights.Also note that following:
- It appears that there is a gas shortage. Very few stations have gas and there are long lines at the ones that are open.
- Scarsdale High School and the Heathcote Elementary School have power and Quaker Ridge is running on partial power provided by generator. The other schools have no power. Superintendent McGill will make a decision on Sunday about opening schools on Monday.
- The Scarsdale Library is open from 9 am -9 pm today (Saturday) and 11 am - 9 pm on Sunday. They are showing movies all day so enjoy.
- We received a comment stating that the Scarsdale Teen Center is open -- with heat and wifi. They are located at 862 Scarsdale Avenue and their phone number is 914-722-8358. Check with them to be sure they are open before you go.
The Village is sending out daily emails that everyone with internet service should receive. As a back-up, we will reprint their messages on the site.
Here is the text of their email from Friday, November 2:
Con Ed is reporting that full restoration throughout Westchester County will be completed by November 11th. 70% or 4,495 out of 6,025 residents remain out of power.The DPW has cleared all roadways that were blocked by trees that did not involve electrical power lines. The Village of Scarsdale is working with the single Con Ed crew in Scarsdale to de-energize, clear and open all other locations. There are roughly 40 roadways or sections of roads still closed. Con Ed has indicated that additional line crews will be provided to the Village this weekend or early next week, after which the recovery will be significantly expedited. Please be reminded that Village crews cannot remove trees and clear roads until Con Ed removes the associated electrical power lines. In the mean time, Village crews continue to remove and dispose of trees and yard waste already cut and left at the curb by residents.
Residents are reminded that their contractors can transport yard waste to the Recycling Center at 110 Secor Road free of charge until further notice. Sanitation collection operations will continue in accordance with the published scheduled for the week of November 5th.
The Police and Fire Departments continue to operate as usual with additional staffing for storm related matters.The Police Department asks that residents stop removing caution tape and barricades from roads. They are there for your protection.
The Fire Department would like to remind all residents to be extremely vigilant with their use of candles and generators. Candles should not be left unattended for any reason, and must be extinguished before leaving the room and before sleep. The Police and Fire Departments are available on a 24/7 basis for all inquiries and concerns.
Traffic lights at the intersections of Heathcote, Crane and Post; Popham and Post; Fenimore and Post and Mamaroneck Rd and Post have been restored via temporary generators purchased and installed by the Village. This has allowed the Village to re-deploy the police officers directing traffic to patrolling neighborhoods, providing additional coverage during the storm recovery period.Village Hall offices are open for business, although the building is still void of electrical power. A temporary generator has been set-up to provide limited lighting and telephones. Residents can now call the following numbers for departmental business:
Residents are reminded that in addition to electrical power, Village Hall offices are without digital voice, data lines and computer and internet service. Village staff is unable to receive or respond to digital communications including emails. In order to reach anyone at Village Hall, residents should call the numbers above or personally visit the building.
All storm related calls should continue to be placed to 722-1150 at the Emergency Operations Center from 6AM-10PM M-F and from 10AM-6PM on Sat. and Sun. Residents should call the police desk at 722-1200 during all other hours. If you receive a busy signal, please try again as phone lines are limited due to storm damage. Dial 911 for all storm and non-storm emergency calls.
All meetings scheduled at Village Hall for next week have been canceled including the Board of Architectural Review (BAR) meeting originally scheduled for November 5th. Applicants scheduled for this BAR meeting will be placed on the November 19, 2012 agenda. Questions should be referred to the Building Department at 722-1140.
The Public Library is open and operating with electrical power and heat. A charging station has been established for phones and other electronic devices. The Village has established extended hours for the Library from 9AM to 9 PM Monday - Saturday.
The New York State Governor’s Office and New York State Board of Elections are coordinating with Con Ed to restore power to polling locations in time for the Tuesday, November 6th National elections. Five of the eight polling places in Scarsdale are without power, four of which are schools and the other Village Hall. There is a chance therefore that these locations will have power restored prior to Con Ed’s reported schedule. Additional election information will be provided on Monday
The Scarsdale Schools were closed all week on account of the storm. Only Scarsdale High School and Heathcote Elementary School have electrical power. The School Officals will make a determination on Sunday as to whether schools will be open on Monday, pending the restoration of power at the schools.
Dry ice is available at two locations from 12 Noon to 6 PM or until supplies last at the following locations:
Town Park in Armonk
200 Business Park Drive, Armonk, NY
Yonkers Raceway
Central and Yonkers Ave, Yonkers, NY
The Scarsdale Parks, Recreation and Conservation Department is providing a limited schedule of scheduled activities this weekend. Please check Scarsdale10583, Scarsdale Patch, or the Daily Scarsdale for more information.
Photo Credit Sarah Schuman
Got Questions? Get Answers Today
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Scarsdale Village Mayor Miriam Flisser and Village Trustees will hold an informational meeting with residents in the Scott Room of Scarsdale Library at 4 pm today. Everyone is invited to attend and hear a briefing on the storm and what is being done to restore Scarsdale.
And for those looking for entertainment instead, SCARVAC – the Scarsdale Volunteer Ambulance Corps invites you to watch the New York Giants game today at 4 pm at their heated headquarters at 5 Weaver Street in Scarsdale.
Halloween Storm Update
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It's two days since Hurricane Sandy hit Scarsdale and the big question is when; i.e. when will the 4,200 customers without power have it restored. We stopped by the Public Safety Building to speak to Lieutenant Thomas Altizio this Wednesday morning to try to get some answers and he shared the following with us:
The Village is at the mercy of Con Edison, who is unable to provide any projection on when power will be fully restored in our area. Con Edison has only one crew in Scarsdale, which is now assessing the damage and deactivating power lines so that the restoration work can begin. They have not committed to send additional crews nor have they provided a schedule for when the power will come back. The Scarsdale Department of Public Works is clearing major routes and removing trees that are resting on power lines.
Lieutenant Altizio warned that some who do have power now may have it cut off as Con Ed works to repair damaged utility poles and wires. In addition to power service, repairmen from Verizon and Cablevision will also need to come to Scarsdale to restore phone, television, cable and wireless service.
Scarsdale Public Schools are closed today October 31 and Altizio did not know when they will reopen. Power to Scarsdale Middle School is out
The Village’s infrastructure was also seriously impacted by the storm. There is currently no communications at Scarsdale Village Hall. Primary phone lines to the Public Safety Building are down, along with all email and digital communications. Police and firefighters are using a radio system and have just two working phone lines – so please only call 911 in an emergency. The outage of the state-of-the-art Lightpath system is due to the failure of a regional hub which is beyond the control of the Village. Police Chief Brogan and his command staff have been staying at the Public Safety Headquarters round the clock since the storm hit and manning the emergency operations center to respond to calls.
As for roadways, many are blocked with yellow tape, and police ask that if you drive to refrain from driving through taped off areas. Fenimore, Heathcote and the Post Roads are open.
Altizio said that Hurricane Sandy had caused the most damage to the Village of any storm to date and asked everyone to be patient with the recovery. He said that Scarsdale was fortunate in that there were no fatalities or major injuries. However, one firefighter was injured when he was returning home from his shift at 4 am on Tuesday morning. A branch pierced his windshield and struck him in the chest.
Continue to check Scarsdale10583 for daily updates.
