BUFFALO, N.Y. — As of Wednesday, National Grid said it will have restored electricity service to all Western New York customers affected by the historic multi-day blizzard.
National Grid said it deployed more than 3,200 restoration experts — including line, service, tree, damage assessment, and public safety workers — and expects the approximately 158 customers who remain without service because of this storm to have power restored Wednesday.
“We thank our customers for their support and patience, and we are incredibly grateful to all first responders, and the state and local agencies who have come together to help our neighbors in need,” said Rudy Wynter, National Grid’s New York President. “We can’t thank local leaders enough for assisting our teams in reaching damaged equipment in need of repair, and by sharing their insights and knowledge of the neighborhoods and communities affected. We want every customer to know that all of us at National Grid will not stop until every customer’s power is restored, and we will be here long after the lights are back on to help this community recover.”
On Sunday, Erie County County Executive Mark Poloncarz said the earliest power will be restored is Monday. He also cautioned that some people who still lacked power might not have it back until Tuesday, due to complications at substations where snow drifts formed.
Crews have been able to make some progress in some areas in restoring power, but those in the worst conditions may have to wait longer for power to be restored.
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National Grid released the following statement on Saturday:
“Our crews have been restoring power since early Friday morning where conditions allow; however, due to the unprecedented severity of this storm we are not able to safely travel and reach all of the damage,” said Matt Barnett, National Grid’s vice president of New York electric operations.
“We are working closely with local officials, first responders, the Department of Transportation and other key emergency response personnel to coordinate our restoration efforts. Safety remains our top priority for our employees and our customers.”
On Monday National Grid released the following update:
"National Grid continues to partner with a coalition of state and local emergency response organizations to identify and prioritize areas for road clearance to facilitate access for power restoration crews after a multi-day blizzard crippled western New York. Snow is expected to continue today with up to an additional 12 inches of accumulation that may further impact restoration efforts."
Outages in some of the hardest hit areas such as the City of Buffalo, Niagara Falls, Albion and Batavia could last more than 48 hours after the storm because of treacherous weather conditions for crews, according to National Grid.
A more accurate estimate of when power will be restored for customers will be provided once the storm subsides.
"This type of restoration requires line workers to manually carry in repair equipment and ladders because the backyards can’t be accessed by utility vehicles," the statement also said.
At a news conference on Friday afternoon, Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz reminded people to only use generators outside of the home and at least 20 feet away.
"When there are deaths in these situations, it's often because people are putting generators in a garage, in their house. Never use it indoors. Never use it in your garage," Poloncarz said.