UPDATE: NStar Responds to Questions About Post-Irene Outages

NStar did its best to respond to power outages and emergencies after the storm, but more than 250,000 customers were affected, and the storm “caused unprecedented damage to our system and electric systems across the east coast,” NStar spokesman Mike Durand wrote in an email response asking for comment on Senate President Therese Murray's letter to the utility.

Durand said NStar declared a Level 5 emergency during Irene, the most severe action in its emergency response plan; the first time the utility has ever implemented the action.

NStar is working to answer questions about its response from the state Department of Public Utilities and Attorney General Martha Coakley. During its review, the utility is gathering input from elected officials, emergency responders and public safety officials, Durand said.

“After any storm of this magnitude we always step back and review our response to determine what worked and what can be improved upon,” Durand said.

During and after the storm, NStar responded to approximately 2,800 tree-related jobs, half of which were identified as emergencies. Durand said the damage could have been far worse, but for the year-round tree pruning and removal program it carries out.

“Through a thoughtful approach to identifying trees, limbs and branches that could cause outages if left unchecked, we greatly reduce the likelihood of day-to-day tree-related outages. We work very closely with town tree wardens on this program. Unfortunately, sustained tropical storm-force winds and hurricane-force wind gusts are still capable of causing widespread damages in heavily treed communities," he said.