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O&R Crews Prepared as Heat Wave Cooks Up Thunderstorms

  • Orange and Rockland Media Relations

  • Pearl River – July 22, 2020

 

O&R crews are prepared to respond to repair damage and restore power in the event any outages occur as a result of the periodic thunderstorms predicted for the region over the next two days. Thunderstorms can cause tree and power line damage, resulting in electric service interruptions.

For safety’s sake, don’t touch or approach any downed wire. Assume the downed wire is energized and dangerous. Do not approach them, try to move them or touch them with any object. Be mindful that downed wires can be hidden from view by tree limbs, leaves or standing water.

O&R personnel follow the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines and practice social distancing with each other and members of the public when responding to emergency calls, to help keep everyone safe from COVID-19. O&R also asks that members of the public remain a safe social distance from O&R crews, work sites and trucks. If you must speak to the crews, please maintain a social distance of at least six feet so that everyone’s health is protected.

If you experience a power outage, don’t assume that O&R automatically knows about it. To be sure the outage is reported, please check its status at www.oru.com and report it yourself. The more information we have, the better O&R can help you.

  • If you have a power outage, you can report it and check to see when your lights will be back on through:
  • At www.oru.com from any computer or web-based mobile device.
  • O&R mobile app from your iPhone, iPad or Android device --- download via Apple Store or Google Play.    
  • Text messaging by texting “OUT” to 69678 (myORU) or    
  • Call 1-877-434-4100.    

To cope with the hot, muggy forecast, O&R is providing these cool tips to help its neighbors try to stay comfortable and save money on energy.

  • Setting your air conditioner to the highest temperature your comfort and health allow will help you save cooling money.
  • Closing all doors and windows in your home while the air conditioning is running can make things cooler at a lower price.
  • Turning down or turning off air conditioning in your home while you are away or at work helps lower your energy bill.
  • Cooking, baking or other household activities that produce heat and humidity are best left for the cooler times of the day and night.
  • Pulling your curtains and shades closed can help block out the sun and the heat of the day.

View this video for more cool tips.

To help its customers prepare to weather a storm, O&R offers more tips:

  • Maintain a distance of at least 50 feet from downed wires and anything they are in contact with including puddles of water and fences. Supervise your children so that they are not in the vicinity and keep pets on a leash or otherwise secure.
  • If a fallen wire is draped over a car, do not approach the car or make rescue attempts. Remain a safe distance away and try to keep the occupant of the vehicle calm. If possible, emergency personnel should handle the situation.
  • Pole-top transformers --- those small grey-colored metal drums attached to the wires at the tops of most utility poles --- also should be avoided when they have been knocked to the ground.
  • Portable generators pose a serious hazard if used improperly. They should be used and installed according to the manufacturer’s instructions. A wrong connection could feed electricity back through the lines and endanger our repair crews. Never plug a generator into a wall unit, use it indoors or set it up outdoors near open home windows or air-handling vents.

To cope with the hot, muggy weather that is expected to continue through the week, O&R is providing these cool tips to help its neighbors try to stay comfortable and save money on energy.

  • Setting your air conditioner to the highest temperature your comfort and health allow will help you save cooling money.
  • Closing all doors and windows in your home while the air conditioning is running can make things cooler at a lower price.
  • Turning down or turning off air conditioning in your home while you are away or at work helps lower your energy bill.
  • Pulling your curtains and shades closed can help block out the sun and the heat of the day.
  • For more Cool tips, check out this video.

Difficulty Paying Your Bill?

Customers can manage their accounts via www.oru.com/myaccount.

O&R is offering continued support for customers during the COVID-19 emergency through a variety of programs designed to help you pay your bill and balance your energy costs. If you’re having difficulty paying your bill, please see our payment assistance options.

For energy efficiency tips, incentives and rebates, please visit www.oru.com/save. 

Orange and Rockland Utilities, Inc. (O&R) is a wholly owned subsidiary of Consolidated Edison, Inc., one of the nation’s largest investor-owned energy companies. O&R is a regulated utility that provides electric service to approximately 300,000 customers in southeastern New York State (where its franchise name is Orange & Rockland) and northern New Jersey (where it’s Rockland Electric Company), and natural gas service to approximately 130,000 customers in New York.

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