Police Chief: Monroe Avenue Is Main Issue in Larchmont

Last night, Larchmont Police Chief John G. Poleway gave the Board of Trustees and community an update on last week's storm aftermath, saying that the Con Edison liaison would be returning to the Village today to continue restoring power. Poleway asked the 219 customers that remain without power to be patient, saying that both ConEd and the Police Department were aware of all the outages in the Village and are working as fast as possible.

The total number of Larchmont customers without power as of last Sunday morning was 2,400, according to ConEd estimates. Once the main issue on Monroe Avenue is completed, they estimate that 173 of those 219 customers will be restored, Poleway said. 

"Our biggest trouble right now appears to be Monroe Avenue," he said, where four poles carrying two transformers each came down. The transformers were compromised, he said, which required ConEd to perform an environmentally-sensitive clean-up because of the oil contained in them. The site is now clear and a work order has been placed, so once the necessary equipment arrives, reconstruction can start. Poleway confirmed with ConEd that the equipment is available and work would begin shortly.

Another trouble spot is Oak Bluff Avenue, which was ordered closed yesterday afternoon due to a large tree on live primary lines, said Poleway. The dead-end street has power, but the angle the tree is at has deteriorated and the Police Department is concerned that it could come down with the wire. The street has been blocked off to vehicular traffic and a clearly-marked pedestrian walkway has been made for residents to access their homes.

There are at least four homes that require a service connection (there's a fifth one on Pryer Lane with a hanging wire). "Unfortunately, with the devastation so widespread, these tend to go low on the priority order," he said.

Good news?

To date, Poleway said, there have been no injuries or accidents directly attributed to the storm. "Certainly, with the amount of damage sustained," Poleway said, "we are lucky."

But why was this storm much worse than expected? asked Mayor Liz Feld. The storm came out of the east, over the water and right into land, explained Poleway. The fact that there were no barriers gave it easy access to the area. It also came after the February snow storm, when a lot of snow melted and saturated the ground. When excess water and wind came last weekend, he said, it softened the ground and made it easier for trees to go down.

Speaking of good news, Poleway reminded the community that Gov. Paterson is seeking to apply for federal emergency assistance. Speaking at a town hall meeting in Greenburgh, N.Y., yesterday, the Governor said that "Westchester County was likely to meet the $2.9 million threshold" to qualify for relief, according to the New York Times. "Mr. Paterson said he was not sure if other areas of the state would qualify."

Municipalities are asked to report estimates of their monetary costs to the Westchester Office of Emergency Management. If the County receives assistance, this could allow for business owners who didn't have power for many days to apply, and home owners could seek low-interest loans, Poleway said. The specifics behind this are to be determined.

Both the fire and police chiefs warned residents to assume that any line on the ground is live. If you step in a puddle, you might not have to touch a wire to get electrocuted, cautioned Fire Chief Richard Heine. In addition, keep your running generators outside of your homes and in open spaces because of the poisonous exhaust that emanates from them. Heine reported that there were several incidents were people did operate generators inside their homes and had to leave their homes for a night as a result. You are running the risk of losing life to keep your basement dry, he said.

Poleway also announced that the NYS Department of Insurance has activated its disaster hotline, which can be accessed for free from 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. daily: 1-800-339-1759.