Sunday, July 20, 2008

Con Ed Made "Low Voltage" Calls This Morning

I usually hang up on recorded messages that arrive at 8:30 AM. This morning, however, I "pressed 1" for English and listened to the message. In case you didn't, here's what they said. Our area is experiencing "Low Voltage," and this may cause flickering in lights, computers, microwaves, and so on. They asked (of course) that all appliances that aren't being used be turned off. It's in everyone's best interest to do that, I suppose. We don't want an outage, right?

They also mentioned that refrigerators can remain on, but to be careful to close the doors completely and quickly. Let's hope we don't get any blackout time.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Much like Osama Bin Laden, Con Edison enjoys using weapons of mass destruction against civilian targets. Here for example, they deployed poison gas against Sunset Park residents, twice in the course of the same spring.

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=990CE1DC173CF932A25751C1A9659C8B63&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

Several people were rendered unconsious, including fire and rescue workers sent to the scene to evacuate the block. Expect more fun and games in the near future as none of these problems were adequately addressed... Something to think about as you pay one of the highest electrical rates in the country.

BestViewInBrooklyn said...

I wouldn't say it's "much like Osama bin Laden," and it seems the the problems stemmed from salt corroding the underground equipment. As far as I know, ConEd doesn't spread salt for the City.

Not to say it's an acceptable. It was a harrowing and dangerous experience for those involved.

Was there another incident? The link you provided described incidents in December of 2003, one in SP and one in Queens.

Anonymous said...

Uh, yeah, it happens a lot actually. The time I was referring to was the spring of 2007. The Sunset Park News, and the Daily News, both covered the story.

BTW, NYC streets have been salted for a long long time. Don't you think ConEd, who has a monopoly on power distribution in NYC, should install equipment that doesn't corrode within a year or two of installation, as it did on our block? Failure of these parts means that the block is flooded with an invisible, odorless gas that will kill you. The casing they pulled was made of cheap cast iron, and had rotted right through. Given that these things are all over SP, and the underground fires are now regular occurances in the spring, you'll have ample opportunity to see for yourself what I am talking about.

BestViewInBrooklyn said...

I absolutely agree that the equipment needs to be updated. Was there something in what I wrote that made you think otherwise?

I think we both have the same goal: that Sunset Park residents have a safe, equally cared for place to live. There's no need to be on the attack. The link you provided was almost five years old; that was what I responded to.

And yes, I know, NYC streets (and most streets in snowy/icy areas) get salted regularly. I've seen it happen decade after decade, in fact!