Power crews off to help storm-hit N.Y.

No strangers to assisting after a natural disaster, Entegrus crews will once again be hitting the road.

The utility has answered a call for assistance from the State of New York to help with their winter storm recovery efforts. According to a news release Friday, Entegrus will be assisting Con Edison in their restoration efforts in Rye, N.Y., north of New York City.

New York City was expected to be under eight to 12 inches of snow, with the heaviest snowfall of up to 24 inches projected in New Jersey and parts of upstate New York. Entegrus has assembled a crew of eight power line maintainers and two supervisors from the Chatham-Kent and Strathroy offices, and is travelling with four power line maintainers from Bluewater Power. “Con Edison is currently dealing with hundreds of downed wires and trees, and is working to clear over 200 blocked roads,” Keith McAllister, vice-president of engineering and operations of Entegrus, said in the release. “The length of time our crew will be gone depends on the extent of the damage in the area they’re working in. The crew will have a better idea of what they’re facing once they arrive, but we expect them to be gone at least one week.” Con Edison operates one of the world’s largest energy delivery systems and supplies energy to over 10 million people in New York City and Westchester County.

In the past, Entegrus has assisted Toronto Hydro with its efforts after the ice storm of 2013, as well as the eastern U.S., including First Energy (Ohio Edison) & Duke Energy/Progress Energy in New Jersey after the devastation caused by Hurricane Sandy in 2012. Last summer, Entegrus responded to Tampa Electric and Florida Power and Light to help during the aftermath of Hurricane Irma. “Con Edison has been dealing with two destructive storms in less than a week” said Jim Hogan, president and CEO of Entegrus. “We’re glad to be in a position to provide assistance.”