Dec 26, 2020
Central Hudson Restores 90% of Customers Impacted by Christmas Wind Storm
Vast Majority Will be Restored Tonight

Repair crews continued to make progress through the night and have restored power to more than 90 percent of homes and businesses impacted by the heavy rains and damaging winds that interrupted service to more than 42,600 customers in Central Hudson’s territory. As of 9:30 a.m., more than 38,800 homes and businesses have been restored with the majority of remaining outages located in Dutchess (1,660), Orange (1,295) and Ulster (670) counties. By county, Central Hudson expects service to be restored to 95 percent of impacted customers by the following dates and times:

  • Albany County – More than 95% restored at this time
  • Columbia County – More than 95% restored at this time
  • Dutchess County – December 26 at 10 p.m.
  • Greene County – More than 95% restored at this time
  • Orange County – December 26 at 10 p.m.
  • Putnam County – December 26 at 8 p.m.
  • Ulster County – December 26 at 10 p.m.
  • Sullivan County – December 26 at 10 p.m.

Central Hudson will conduct proactive outreach in the hardest hit areas to inform any customers who may be without power overnight tonight.

“We now have a field force of more than 500 line and tree professionals that includes the arrival of more than 80 line professionals this morning and mutual aid assistance from Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, North Carolina and Vermont who will continue to work today as we move toward completing our restoration efforts,” said Ryan Hawthorne, Assistant Vice President of Electric Engineering and Operations. “We know how important electrical service is to our customers who are still celebrating the holidays over the weekend as well as navigating the challenges associated with the COVID-19 pandemic.  We expect to have the vast majority of customers restored by this evening, but as we progress, each repair will restore service to fewer and fewer customers, even single households, and may take just as long to complete as previous restorations. These final repairs can be tedious and time consuming, and our crews will continue working until the job is done and every restoration is complete.” To report or obtain restoration status for an outage, customers can log on to CentralHudson.com/Storms.

“I’d also like to sincerely thank all of the municipal and emergency responders who worked alongside us throughout the holiday. Their hard work helped expedite repairs, open roadways and ensure public safety, and we’re grateful for their efforts,” Hawthorne added.

Central Hudson plans to distribute additional supplies of dry ice and bottled water on Saturday from Noon to 4 p.m. at the following locations:

  • Fishkill Home Depot, 450 Route 9, Fishkill NY 12524
  • Town of Rochester Community Center15 Tobacco Rd, Accord, NY 12404

Dry ice has been subject to a national shortage, most recently for the shipping and preserving of COVID-19 vaccines. Customers can also preserve their perishable food by placing it in coolers outdoors.

Weather conditions are expected to be dry over the weekend, which will help in the restoration of services, but temperatures are forecasted to drop below freezing. Residents are reminded to exercise extra caution in potentially icy conditions, and to be wary of the possibility of black ice on roadways.

Residents are also advised to exercise an abundance of caution around downed power lines by staying at least 30 feet away, and remember that downed lines can become entangled and hidden in fallen limbs. Residents should also remember to assume any downed power lines are live. Also, he advised that customer never drive through standing water on roadways.

Hawthorne reminded residents to keep safety in mind, particularly during power interruptions:

  • Never use outdoor gas or charcoal grills indoors, as they pose a fire hazard and over time can give off carbon monoxide gas;
  • Beware of fallen trees and limbs, and use caution when traveling;
  • Avoid the use of candles for illumination due to fire hazards;
  • Follow the manufacturer’s safety instructions on the use of emergency generators, and be sure to shut off the main breaker when in use and operate the units outdoors;
  • Operate cars and motor vehicles outdoors only, and never inside the garage; and
  • Avoid travel along roadways as hazardous conditions may cause driving accidents, including those involving utility poles which may cause power interruptions.

Customers can stay informed of storm and restoration conditions in the following ways:

  • By text messaging: Customers should enroll in Central Hudson’s Texting Program to use text messaging to report their power condition and to obtain repair status. To enroll, visit CentralHudson.com/Alerts or text REG to 236483;
  • On the Web: Visit CentralHudson.com/Storms to report outages and obtain restoration updates;
  • Via smart phones: A mobile version of the Central Hudson’s website can be accessed by web-enabled cell phones and mobile devices at https://mobile.CenHud.com. Free Central Hudson mobile applications for Android and Apple and are also available by logging onto com/mobileapp;
  • Through social media: “Like” Central Hudson on Facebook (Facebook.com/CentralHudson) and “Follow” on Twitter (Twitter.com/CentralHudson); and
  • By phone: Call the Central Hudson PowerLine at (845) 452-2700 or 1-800-527-2714, and please use the automated system to report or monitor your power condition.

More information on preparing for storms and emergencies and communicating with Central Hudson is available at www.CentralHudson.com; for information regarding electric and natural gas safety, visit www.CentralHudson.com/Safety.

 

Mutual aid crews arrive at Central Hudson’s office in Lake Katrine

Mutual aid crews arrive at Central Hudson’s office in Lake Katrine, Ulster County before being sent out to assist in restoration efforts following the Christmas wind storm.