O&R: 23,800 Rockland Customers Without Power

Orange & Rockland Utilities customers without power in Rockland County could be waiting days before the lights come back on.

According to O&R, 23,800 customers in Rockland County were without power as of 11:22 a.m. Monday morning. That includes 2,978 in Orangetown and 6,469 in Clarkstown. More details are available on O&R's outage map.

Crews are still working to address downed or damaged power lines from Saturday's storm. The primary focus is on safety, then on restoring power to the largest numbers of customers possible.

"It's a bit of both, but we are edging more toward the priorities of the largest amount of customers," said Maria Pollard of O&R. "There is always something people are still calling in. We are adding more crews to the effort as we speak, so you will start to see larger numbers restored."

Pollard said that O&R does look at restoring power to hospitals, emergency services and schools as well as residents, but could offer no estimates on when the Rockland County schools that are without power could be restored. Power outages were a primary reason that Clarkstown, Nanuet, Nyack, Pearl River and South Orangetown schools were closed Monday.

"Right now our goal is 90 percent of our customers (restored) by midnight Wednesday night," Pollard said.

They are looking at having power back for all customers by Friday.

O&R will be distributing dry ice at the Rockland Boulders' ballpark in Pomona from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Monday. Dry ice can be used to keep items in a container cold for longer than regular ice.

O&R is urging caution for those going out due to the wires that may still be down. Downed lines should be avoided and reported to O&R at 1-877-434-4100. Parents are advised to watch their children closely if they are out tonight.

"Downed wires are very dangerous," Pollard said. "You have to assume every line on the ground is live."