Two Days Later, One-Third of Rye Still in the Dark

As of Thursday morning, 35% of homes in Rye still have no power in the wake of Tropical Storm Isaias. That’s down from over 50% on Wednesday. Con Ed is saying this is the second worst outage in its history after Hurricane Sandy.

In an email to residents Wednesday evening, Rye Mayor Josh Cohn said “As a mayoral veteran of the March 2018 snow and wind storms, the related investigative response and Con Ed’s promises to do better, I was baffled by the clear possibility that we may be in the early days of yet another Con Ed “accident.””

Oy!

Hands together for Rye DPW for working through the day and night to clear the roads for all of us. The city has opened one socially distanced cooling and charging center at Rye City Hall and another senior only center at Rye Recreation. Details are below in the city update (issues Wednesday @ 5pm):

“For those without power and a/c, I am happy to report that the City is opening a “cooling/recharge” center in City Hall, open from 8:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Overheated humans and depleted devices are welcome to a thermal and electrical refresher. Of course, we have a few COVID rules to ask you to mind. You will find them at the bottom of the page. The Rye Free Reading Room will, during its regular hours, also open the door (knock or email, please) to those in like need.

Rye Rec is working to open a similar “seniors only” center, with COVID sensitivity, and will be disseminating information on that separately.

On its Westchester municipal call this morning, Con Ed was unable to offer an estimated date for full restoration of power. Con Ed was also unable to describe repair crew strengths of a size plausible to do the job in a plausible time frame. As a mayoral veteran of the March 2018 snow and wind storms, the related investigative response and Con Ed’s promises to do better, I was baffled by the clear possibility that we may be in the early days of yet another Con Ed “accident.” Let’s all cross our fingers and toes and hope it isn’t so — and that the weather remains as Con Ed predicts for coming days: cloudy and not too, too hot.

We are of course still clearing roads — we are not seeing much yet by way of power restoration. As previously noted, our DPW has worked mightily to clear whatever it can without having Con Ed electrical expertise at hand. We have been given only one Con Ed “cut and clear” crew today. We are trying to get at least that one crew, if not more, to work through the night with us.

We have had to shift our clearing priorities somewhat from those described this morning. Rather than arousing and then dashing hopes with a new list, please allow me to say that, generally speaking, we have been working on the major roads, adjusting as needs, resources and opportunities presented themselves. Your City government will do everything it can to make road clearing and power restoration go as quickly and equitably as possible. Con Ed, obviously, is key.

Two points to remember, please:

-Each and every Con Ed customer account holder without power should report their outage through the Con Ed website or 1-800-75-CONED. Doing so may help avoid getting left behind, when Con Ed thinks it has fixed your whole neighborhood and you alone are sitting in the dark.

-Stay away, way away, from downed power lines, even the ones that have been down so long you are sure they must be off.

Isaias could have been a hero, had he blown COVID-19 away, but that was not to be. City of Rye still has a steady, small number of active cases, hopefully resolving without complication. Our immediate vulnerability remains the seeming difficulty our young have in recognizing their ability to catch or transmit the disease, as well as the desire of us kids of all ages to relax and enjoy the summer. So, still, masks or social distancing, please. Hand-washing of course.

Not power or COVID-related:

This car theft business is getting dangerous. Please, let’s stop supporting it by leaving keys and fobs in our open cars. We had a car chase with a flaming wreck by the Citibank last week. How did the fleeing perp get away? He stole another nearby car (unlocked, key inside)! In an earlier chase, there was the possibility of shots having been fired at our police. We can make Rye unattractive for this just by locking our cars. Please do.

Bike helmets? So many are not wearing them. It’s hot and they are sooo uncool. But, so’s that Humpty Dumpty look after that trip over the handlebars (been there, done that) or the backflip headstand following that slippery wheelie.

Stay cool. Be well.

Mayor Josh Cohn

City Hall Cooling Center Procedures:
Residents must enter City Hall through the front door on the Village Green. For anyone who needs a handicap accessible entrance, please call 914-967-7404.
You will be greeted at the door by a staff member.
Visitors and staff must wear a mask indoors at all times.
All visitors must sign into the visitors’ binder attesting to health concerns related to COVID-19. Please stay home if you are feeling sick or exhibiting any symptoms associated with COVID-19 or if you believe you have been exposed to the virus.
Visitors will have their temperature taken before entering. The thermometer must read 100.3 degrees or below in order to gain entry.You will then be directed to the Council Chambers where outlets will be made available.
Please be aware that many residents may be waiting for an outlet so kindly unplug your device as soon as you have sufficient charge.
Bring all necessary cords and plugs. We will only have the outlets themselves available.
You are responsible for your own property at all times.
Only the Council Chambers and the public restrooms will be available for use.”