Power May Return: PSE&G Report Overlooks South Orange

Village President Alex Torpey, along with Assemblywoman Mila Jasey and Assemblyman John McKeon, has been assured by PSE&G that South Orange is a priority, according to Torpey. 

However, an 11 a.m. report posted on the PSE&G website fails to mention South Orange as a county priority. 

According to the report: 
-- Of the 346,260 customers in Essex County, 251,000 customers lost electricity. As of Saturday morning, 122,400 customers remain out of service.
-- PSE&G has restored service to 65% of the customers in Newark and will be working in the city all weekend.
-- Crews will be also be focusing on Irvington, West Orange, Montclair, East Orange, Bloomfield, Maplewood, Orange and Belleville this weekend.

The update from the Village:

approximately 2100 homes in South Orange are without power.

The Village has asked PSE&G to provide neighborhood-specific information as far as restoration to ensure that those numbers from PSE&G match the reality of the outages/restoration in the Village. As soon as that information is received, OEM officials will draw comparisons between what PSE&G provides and what actually exists, and follow up with the Board of Public Utilities and the Governor's Office if there are discrepancies.

After speaking with our state assembly members, County Executive's Office and Governor's Office who have been able to help put pressure and get more information from PSE&G, we have compiled some highlights as follows:

• According to PSE&G, the main work on residential areas will begin on Saturday, and South Orange residents should see many crews working in the area, as our areas have been prioritized for this new influx of out of state crews
• Many of the crews so far have been working at substations and distributers, which mean less crews are visible to the average homeowner, but the actual fixes impact a larger number of homes. This specifically includes a downed substation in Maplewood, which provides power to large parts of South Orange, approximately in the area of thousands of people. This facility is expected to come back online shortly, and this facility has been prioritized. 
• Because of the crews being brought in from out of state this weekend, and the number that will be working in South Orange, PSE&G is expecting that many (not all) South Orange residents could have power returned in the next three to four days, especially as substations and transformers come back online.
• Because of the power lines running through backyards in South Orange, although roads are open and clear sooner, the fixes take longer, so residents with individual lines down may see restoration at the end of that three day period or past it. 

Find official statements from PSE&G: http://www.pseg.com/info/media/news.jsp