Central Hudson Mobilizes Crews, Restores Power to More Than Half of Those Impacted Following Severe Thunderstorms

Several powerful lines of thunderstorms toppled trees and caused other damage that interrupted electric service at nearly 200 individual outage locations, affecting more than 15,500 customers in Central Hudson Gas & Electric's service area on Sunday afternoon.

As of 6:30 p.m. approximately 7,200 customers remain without power, with more than 8,300 customers having had power restored. Below are current outages listed by county.

• Columbia County: 212 Customers affected
• Dutchess County: 5,883 Customers affected
• Greene County: 144 Customers affected
• Orange County: 9 Customers affected
• Putnam County: 9 Customers affected
• Sullivan County: 161 Customer affected
• Ulster County: 681 Customers affected

"A series of quick moving storms on Sunday caused significant damage across our service area, and crews which had previously been mobilized were dispatched to begin assessing damage and restoring power as soon as it was safe," said Ryan Hawthorne, Vice President of Electric Engineering and Operations. "For some of the hardest hit areas, service will not be restored until Monday. We understand the loss of power is frustrating for our customers, and we are working as quickly and safely as possible to get service restored."

Central Hudson has 50 mutual aid crews supplementing its own team of several hundred employees who are working to assist customers and restore service as safely and quickly as possible.

Residents are advised to exercise an abundance of caution around downed power lines by staying at least 30 feet away and remember that downed lines can become entangled and hidden in fallen limbs. Residents should also remember to assume any downed power lines are live.

Customers are advised to keep safety in mind, particularly during power interruptions:

• Never use kitchen stoves or outdoor gas or charcoal grills indoors, as they pose a fire hazard and over time can give off carbon monoxide gas;
• Avoiding opening a refrigerator unnecessarily during outages, so that food lasts longer, an unopened refrigerator can keep food fresh for up to 4 hours;
• Beware of fallen trees and limbs, and use caution when traveling;
• Avoid the use of candles for illumination due to fire hazards;
• Follow the manufacturer's safety instructions on the use of emergency generators, and be sure to shut off the main breaker when in use and operate the units outdoors;
• Operate cars and motor vehicles outdoors only, and never inside the garage; and
• Avoid travel along roadways as hazardous conditions may cause driving accidents, including those involving utility poles which may cause power interruptions.

Customers can stay informed of storm and restoration conditions in the following ways:

• By text messaging: Customers should enroll in Central Hudson's Texting Program to use text messaging to report their power condition and to obtain repair status. To enroll, visit CentralHudson.com/Alerts or text REG to 236483;
• On the Web: Visit CentralHudson.com/Storms to report outages and obtain restoration updates;
• Mobile App: Free Central Hudson mobile applications are available for Android and Apple devices at www.cenhud.com/mobileapp;
• Through social media: "Like" Central Hudson on Facebook (Facebook.com/CentralHudson) and "Follow" on Twitter (Twitter.com/CentralHudson); and
• By phone: Call the Central Hudson PowerLine at (845) 452-2700 or 1-800-527-2714, and please use the automated system to report or monitor your power condition.
• If a member of your household needs electricity to operate life sustaining equipment, please contact customer service at (845) 452-2700.

More information on preparing for storms and emergencies and communicating with Central Hudson is available at www.CentralHudson.com; for information regarding electric and natural gas safety, visit www.CentralHudson.com/Safety.

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