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“It is evident that Yonkers has been overlooked by Con Ed in its restoration efforts since Hurricane Sandy hit,” Spano said in a statement. “Now as 10,000 Yonkers customers approach a full week without power, time is overdue for Con Ed to step it up, especially now as we expect another severe storm this Wednesday.”
Although the city is making progress in cleaning up downed trees and clearing city streets, efforts to return Yonkers to a state of normalcy have been slowed by Con Ed’s response, Spano said. As of Monday afternoon, the utility company reported 68,000 customers without power in Westchester, including 10,000 in Yonkers.
The Yonkers mayor questioned the Con Ed's readiness and approach to the storm.
“Simply put, Con Ed was not prepared for the damage caused by Sandy and Yonkers is now feeling the devastating repercussions,” he said.
Monday was not the first time Spano has expressed his frustration with the utility company. Last week, 48 hours after Sandy swept through the region, the mayor questioned Con Ed’s “somewhat slow” response to reports of downed power lines throughout the city.
“Con Ed is being a tad too slow for my liking on identifying when we can help ourselves,” he said at the time.
Although much of the power has been restored to New York City, many Westchester officials say the suburbs have been largely ignored.
Spano is not the first Westchester politician to call out Con Ed for a perceived lack of attention to the area.
“One of the major reasons why power is still out in many homes is because Con Ed gave Westchester communities only token help until this weekend,” Greenburgh Supervisor Paul Feiner wrote in a recent email.
Rob Greenstein, president of the Chappaqua-Millwood Chamber of Commerce, echoed those sentiments.
“It is unconscionable that Con Edison is not moving faster to restore power to neighborhoods,” he said in a letter to The Daily Voice.
Spano said he expects the New York State Legislature to hold public hearings after the cleanup efforts have passed to judge Con Ed's response.
“I, for one, plan to make my voice heard,” he said.
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