Thousands Still Without Power in the Area Monday

UPDATED AT 10:10 a.m.

After an unusual October storm dumped snow on the area Saturday, some residents in Westwood and Washington Township remained without power Monday morning.

According to its outage map, PSE&G reported between 501 and and 2,000 households in both Westwood and Washington Township Monday morning. In an update released at 9 a.m., the utility said that 145,000 customers were without power, with the majority in Bergen County, at 66,000. PSE&G reported it has restored power to 70 percent of customers impacted by the storm.

PSE&G has 150 crews and 212 tree crews working to restore power to all customers. The company has also brought in 60 crews from other states and 100 contractors to help bring power back.

Because of the power outages, area schools decided to keep their doors closed Monday. All public schools in the Westwood Regional School District are closed Monday, as well as in Westwood and in Washington Township.

Westwood police said the light at the intersection of Old Hook and Kinderkamack roads was working properly Monday morning. Washington Township police said main roads are clear, but there are still blocked side streets because of fallen branches and trees.

NJ Transit's Pascack Valley line is operating, but it could be more crowded since the transportation company is cross-honoring tickets system-wide Monday. NJ Transit buses are subject to detours because of local road conditions.

The will be picking up storm debris this week, but branches must be cut into four-foot pieces and left at the curb. Any trees tangled in wires cannot be removed until PSE&G deactivates the wires. The leaf pick up schedule remains in place.

Because Monday is Halloween, area law enforcement as well as PSE&G urge caution while trick-or-treating.