PSEG Wraps Up Repairs After Wild Weather Wallops Essex County, Other Parts Of NJ

ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — One of the largest restoration efforts in PSE&G history has finally wrapped up after a week of wild weather left hundreds of thousands of New Jersey residents without power, including many in Essex County.

Last week’s lingering heat dome sapped power across the grid as air conditioners went into overdrive. By the end of the heat wave, PSE&G had made more than 7,000 air conditioner repairs and replaced 110 air conditioning systems in its territory.

Subscribe

Then came the storms.

The 70 mph winds and heavy rain – which raged over the Independence Day weekend – brought down trees and power lines across Essex County. Towns and cities that were hit hard included Newark, Montclair, Bloomfield, Nutley and Belleville.

By the time the skies had cleared, PSE&G had restored more than 380,000 customer outages in New Jersey. Meanwhile, the utility company replaced or repaired nearly 700 utility poles, and cleared more than 1,500 trees to access damaged equipment.

Nearly all customers were restored before midnight on Tuesday, with the last two customers restored at 2 a.m. on Wednesday, PSE&G reported.

It took a massive effort from field crews, who put in long hours during a holiday weekend, spokespeople said.

Meanwhile, other employees pitched in behind the scenes to help get the electricity flowing again, including customer service representatives, dispatchers, system operators, engineers, logistics teams and damage assessors.

“I couldn't be more proud of the professionalism, compassion and determination the workforce showed operating through oppressive heat, severe weather and long hours to restore service safely during what ranks in the top ten most impactful storms in our history,” said Kim Hanemann, president and chief operating officer of PSE&G.

“And they did so with safety top of mind, looking out for one another,” Hanemann added.

South Orange Mayor Sheena Collum said nearly 10 percent of homes in the town were without power during the peak of the storm.

The boots-on-the-ground effort didn’t go unnoticed, she said.

“We appreciate the PSE&G crews who worked under difficult conditions to rebuild extensively damaged infrastructure, including in areas where backyard utility lines and difficult terrain made restoration especially challenging,” Collum said.

“This was truly a team effort, strengthened by constant collaboration between PSE&G, our municipal team, and an incredible community that never stopped looking out for one another,” she added.

• Related: Utility Crews Battle Wild Weather As They Restore Power In NJ [WATCH]

Send local news tips and correction requests to eric.kiefer@patch.com. Learn more about advertising on Patch here. Find out how to post announcements or events to your local Patch site.