file photo by Boyd Loving
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, Public Service Electric & Gas, New Jersey’s largest utility, is monitoring the forecast and preparing for the strong winds, heavy snow and possible flooding Wednesday afternoon into Thursday. These conditions may cause tree limbs to break and pull down wires, causing power interruptions. PSE&G has a full complement of staff ready to respond, has performed system checks on critical transmission and distribution equipment, and performed logistics checks to ensure the availability of critical materials, fuel and other supplies.
PSE&G is ensuring extra supplies are on hand, including poles and transformers, and will have additional personnel ready to respond to any possible power outages the approaching storm brings.
“We are preparing based on the snow and wind forecast. While we expect that our preparation will allow us to address outages quickly, the uncertainty of the forecast could result in some longer outages and customers should prepare accordingly,” said Jack Bridges, PSE&G’s vice president for Electric Operations. “We understand how important having power is, particularly during the pandemic and cold weather. We encourage customers to contact us immediately should they experience an outage.”
PSE&G is prepared to maintain safe, reliable service during the COVID-19 pandemic. “In response to the outbreak, we have adapted our storm and safety procedures to follow public health guidelines and industry best practices,” Bridges said. “We thank our customers for their patience as we operate under these unusual circumstances to safely restore power as quickly as possible.”
The safety of PSE&G’s customers and employees is the company’s top priority. We ask that customers remain in their homes while crews are working nearby. If customers must speak with our crews, we ask that they practice responsible physical distancing and remain at least 6 feet away to ensure the health of everyone involved. For more information about how PSE&G continues to live up to its commitments during the pandemic, please visit pseg.com/COVID19.
Customers should prepare, be cautious and stay alert to their surroundings during and after storms.
Downed wires should always be considered “live.” Stay at least 30 feet away from downed power lines and immediately call PSE&G at 1-800-436-PSEG (7734) or 911 to report downed wires.
Go to pseg.com/outagecenter to check the “Outage Map,” which is updated every 15 minutes with PSE&G outage information, and to register for MyAlerts to receive text notifications.
