--Outage update: We are making steady progress. In three days, we have restored service to more than 1 million PSE&G customers following Hurricane Sandy. About 692,000 customers are currently without power. The storm impacted 1.7 million of PSE&G’s 2.2 million electric customers. We’ve also increased the stability of our transmission system to ensure that the high-voltage lines can deliver the power.
-- Our estimate is that we will have virtually all of our impacted customers restored to service within the coming week. The majority of customers will be restored before then. After Nov. 9, there may still be isolated pockets of customers who have individual flooding or downed line issues that may take slightly longer.
-- The storm surge flooded a large number of substations along the Passaic, Hackensack and Hudson rivers, and the Arthur Kill, disrupting service to customers in Hudson, Essex and Middlesex counties. The magnitude of the flooding in contiguous areas is unprecedented. PSE&G had to take these stations out of service, wait for the flood waters to recede to assess the damage, dry out the equipment, replace equipment when necessary and re-energize the system to restore service. We continue to make progress on the substations affected by flood waters from the tidal surge. This is a painstaking process to thoroughly clean the equipment so theta it can be safely re-energized.
-- The total number of people who have come from other states to assist is now more than 2,000. This includes additional line personnel, tree crews and substation operators.
-- PSE&G’s key areas of focus are:
* Repairing our damaged switching stations and substations in Hudson and Essex Counties so we can energize them and deliver the power to customers.
* Gas refineries - We have restored power to the Conoco Phillips and Buckeye Pipeline gas refineries. We are making progress on restoring the other two refineries that we serve in the area.
* Gas stations - We are working with the NJ Gasoline Service Association to identify gas stations that have the commodity, but need power restored to get the gas flowing.
* Overhead infrastructure - We continue to clear trees, debris and downed wires from state, county and municipal roadways so we can begin repairing overhead infrastructure in Bergen and Passaic Counties.
-- Important safety information: Downed wires should always be considered “live.” STAY AWAY FROM ALL DOWNED LINES. Do not approach or drive over a downed line and do not touch anything that it might be in contact with. To report a downed wire and other visible equipment damage, call 1-800-436-PSEG and tell PSE&G the nearest cross street.
-- To report a power outage, call PSE&G’s Customer Service line: 1-800-436-PSEG.
-- Crews work around the clock to repair equipment and restore power. The utility’s call center also has been fully staffed on a 24-hour basis to handle calls from customers. Other employees are assisting with assessing storm damage, keeping the public away from any downed power lines and other functions that support restoration efforts.
-- Electric crews work to restore power to the largest numbers of customers first, taking into account “priority” customers, such as hospitals, police stations, fire stations, water and sewer facilities, communications facilities (TV, radio, and telephone), and customers on life-sustaining medical equipment. At the same time, the utility restores power to homes and businesses, starting with the circuits serving the largest number of customers.
-- Customers with a handheld device, or who are at an alternate location with power, can also report power outages and view the status of their outage by logging in to My Account at pseg.com. General outage activity throughout our service territory is available online at www.pseg.com/outagecenter and updates are posted on pseg.com during severe weather.
-- PSE&G has activated its Twitter page to keep the public informed about our restoration progress. Sign up as a follower at http://twitter.com/psegdelivers to monitor restoration progress.