LIPA and National Grid prepare for storm

As many as 100,000 outages possible

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In preparation of the snow storm that is going to hit Long Island, LIPA is getting ready for thousands of potential outages.

            In a press release, LIPA said that the storm has the potential to cause 100,000 outages. National Grid, which has taken over communications for LIPA during the storm, said it has taken steps to prepare for the worst. It has secured hundreds of extra line crews, tree trimmers and support personnel to support the 500 linemen and 150 tree trimmers already waiting to go out and restore power.

            “If you look back at Hurricane Sandy and the lessons learned, one of the big issues was communication and that we might not have provided residents with timely information,” said Mike Taunton, LIPA’s chief operating officer. “So one of the things we wanted to do in preparation for this storm was, one, make sure there was one voice being heard and that whoever was speaking to the public and was delivering the same message.”

            LIPA executives said they learned the lessons from Sandy and are preparing for this storm better. LIPA has preemptively brought in extra line men and tree trimmers — something that didn’t happen until after Sandy hit. Also, in an effort to coordinate information more effectively, National Grid will be communicating regularly with the press and public. There are more than 5,000 people working to prepare and respond to the storm.

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