Almost 7,000 People Lose Power After Two Outages Strike Southern Brooklyn
Almost 7,000 people lost power for several hours Sunday after two power outages struck Sheepshead Bay and Gravesend.
The first blackout was caused by a fallen tree limb near East 26th Street and Avenue I, a spokesperson for Con Edison said. The outage caused almost 1,000 customers between Voorhies Avenue and Avenue Y to lose power for several hours in the early morning.
The second power outage arrived just before 5pm and knocked out power for almost 6,000 people living below Avenue U, between East 13th Street and West 7th Street, according to Con Edison. Service on the F Line was also disrupted while the electric company worked to fix the problem.
The Art Station, located on Avenue U, near East 13th Street, had to put out candles and flashlights to accommodate 40 elementary school children who were taking a painting class when the power went out.
“Do you see that big party in the back? I’ve got two more parties coming here in less than hour,” Owner Shlomo Harari said while standing around the flickering candles placed in his store. “We’re worried about how to manage these events.”
Alla Rozenberg, who used light from her cellphone to supervise her son and daughter in the dark, said the situation was stressful, but also made for a fun, candle-lit party for the kids.
“It’s stressful for the parents.” she explained. “We have to watch the kids, who were standing up in their chairs and trying to run around in the dark. But it actually added an element of excitement.”
Power was restored in less than an hour, though the cause is still under investigation, Con Edison said. The company has been working in the area for months to repair power lines that were damaged by Superstorm Sandy.
The Office of Emergency Management responded to the second power outage by deploying light towers in the area and having backup generators on standby, said an agency spokesperson. They also coordinated with City Councilman Chaim Deutsch’s office, which was fielding calls from residents, to keep the community informed and respond to emergencies caused by the power loss.
Deutsch praised Con Edison and the Office of Emergency Management for their rapid response.
“Con Edison and OEM worked quickly to make sure that my constituents weren’t literally left in the dark,” he said.
While the cause of the second power outage is still unknown, Deutsch said that Con Edison must work rapidly to repair Sandy-damaged infrastructure. He urged residents experiencing flickering lights and brown outs to immediately report the issue to the power company or his office so that it can be addressed.