Businesses in downtown areas of Hewlett and Woodmere along Broadway are open and life is beginning feel a bit more normal after Hurricane Sandy.
Restoration of power is a bit slower in Cedarhurst and Lawrence. In Cedarhurst village hall the generator is running until midnight, and Mayor Andrew Parise said the building at 200 Cedarhurst Ave. is open and residents can come in and charge their cell phones.
“We are all in the same boat,” said Parise, adding that all but one of the village trustees has power as two of the four of the substations that generate electricity for the village are not operating after being submerged in saltwater due to Hurricane Sandy.

Deputy Mayor Benjamin Weinstock said that LIPA is bring in extra crews from out of state to help with restoring power and repairing the crippled substations. LIPA estimate's that power will be restored to some of the Island by next weekend for the South and North Shores it will be closer to two week," he said.

The sewage treatment plant in Cedarhurst that is now operated by Nassau County is running, Parise said. “We thought we would and anticipated running out of fuel and there would be a problem with the pump, but we were pro-active and it never stopped,” the mayor said. The Cedarhurst plant treats 600-700,000 gallons of waster per day.

In Lawrence, a majority of the village remains without power. There was also a concern about the water being contaminated, but Lawrence officials said the water is clean.

On Friday, Mayor Martin Oliner spoke with LIPA regarding the power situation in the village. Lawrence is served by three substations located in Cedarhurst, Woodmere and Far Rockaway, which has eight substation which were severely damaged, Oliner said. "They are within flooded areas and are not likely to be operative for weeks," the mayor said.

With a majority of Lawrence served by those damaged substations, LIPA agreed to a reconfiguration that will have electricity flowing through the Cedarhurst and Woodmere substations.

"... it is likely that we will have electricity in larger parts of the village early next week," Oliner said, who added there is no exact time for the restoration.

Sanitation pick ups will follow normal schedules. Bulk pick ups will begin on Saturday and continue through next week.

At least five Nassau County police and four vehicles manned by security retained by the village and five auxiliary police vehicles will patrol, along with the National Guard. Oliner said he requested an increase in Guardsmen and portable lights and generators to control traffic signals.