Con Ed: 25,000 in Queens without power

(New York-WABC, July 21, 2006) (WABC) -- Things just got ten times worse in Queens. Con Edison now acknowledges there are many more people in the dark in northwest Queens than it has been claiming.

Con Edison says its estimates just soared because of visual inspections thta crews made in the past few hours of damage to cables and block-by-block surveys.

Now, instead of 2,500 customers out of power in Queens, Con Edison estimates that 25,000 are without power.

On Thursday, politicians angrily accused Con Ed of purposely underestimating the damage. The company says previous estimates were based on the number of customers who had called the company to say they were without electricity.

Con Edison continues to encourage customers to call 1-800-75 CONED to report outages.

Eyewitness News' Ken Rosato is in Astoria with more on the ongoing problems, that have Queens residents at the boiling point.

All the restaurants and stores near me are closed this morning because the neighborhood has been in a blackout since Monday night into Tuesday morning.

Residents are absolutely fuming, saying this is the fifth day of the blackout and they are just fed up.

Queens

Simmering anger boiled over last night with crowds heckling Con Ed workers. This is the fifth day of the blackout brownout in Queens and people in Astoria are fed up.

Con Ed's trying to sidetrack the public anger distributing ice and water. But people say, where's the electricity?

Last night they could see power lines smoldering and manholes exploding.

Mayor Bloomberg is coming under fire as well,taking four days before he went to Astoria to offer assurances.

He says Con Ed has promised to investigate the cause of the blackouts -- and give him a report within two weeks.

Astoria Resident: "It's ridiculous, we shouldn't be living like this, it's 2006."

Astoria Resident: "I have a feeling they knew this was going to happen and it's a lack of maintenance."

Con Ed Statement This Morning:

Con Edison has more than 500 splicers, troubleshooters, mechanics, and support personnel working around the clock to restore power to customers in sections of northwest Queens. Crews have been working steadily to identify and repair damaged equipment and to replace burned wiring.

Last night, employees drove several miles throughout the affected areas to pinpoint exact locations where customers have lost power in order to expedite the restoration effort. Crews are inspecting more than 2,000 manholes, approximately 5,000 service boxes, over 600 transformers, and nearly 500 miles of cable, and are repairing or replacing damaged equipment.

As most of the primary cables in the grid have been reenergized, crews are concentrating on the secondary wires - those that deliver electricity from the primary system to homes and businesses.

Starting at 6:30 a.m. Con Edison Customer Outreach advocates will be distributing ice at Ditmars Boulevard and Steinway Street in Astoria. Outreach advocates will also be at the Long Island City YMCA located at 32-23 Queens Blvd. between 32nd and 33rd Streets in Long Island City at 8 a.m.

Claims representatives will be available at both locations to help customers process claims forms, which are also available on the company's Web site at www.coned.com.

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