Latimer: Lingering outages are unacceptable, utilities need to invest in more manpower

Westchester County Executive George Latimer said Monday that utilities don't have enough manpower to handle outages as thousands across the region remain without power nearly one week after Isaias.

The bulk of the Westchester customers are with Con Edison, while the rest are with NYSEG.

He says he agrees with Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who threatened to pull utility companies' licenses for their response. Latimer also says that the utilities are not investing in having more employees to cut and clear debris or restore power lines.

The Hudson Valley is also in a heat advisory until Wednesday night. There are dozens of cooling and charging stations around the county where people can go.

 

 

- There are 434 active cases of coronavirus in Westchester County. A month ago today, there were 526 active cases of coronavirus in the county.

- Over 428,000 coronavirus tests have been performed in the county. In the last week, over 28,000 tests were performed.

- 1 in every 10 people tested for coronavirus in the county test positive.

- Latimer says only one person has died from COVID-19 in the past week.

- The county has written up a FAQ for school districts and reopening. It can be found on the county's official website.

- There are still over 18,000 Con Edison customers without power in Westchester County as of noon Monday.

- There are around 40 NYSEG customers without power.

- Latimer says the county has no authority over the utilities - they are hired by the state.

- Latimer is calling to form a utility reserve court so that extra people can be brought in to help bring on power.

- "We don't have enough people," Latimer says.

- He says there are cooling and charging centers around the county.

- Latimer says that the federal government should have implemented a national strategy in handling coronavirus.