Massive Con Ed Transformer Explosion Blamed For Widespread Outage
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A massive transformer explosion rocked a Con Edison plant Monday night as Superstorm Sandy raged.
The explosion occurred just before 8:30 p.m. at the plant at 14th Street and the Franklin D. Roosevelt East River Drive. It was blamed for knocking out power to much of Manhattan. Power was down from 39th Street south all the way to the southern tip of Manhattan.
Con Ed said it could take up to a week for repairs to be made, and for power to be restored to the tens of thousands of customers left in the dark.
It was not immediately learned whether the explosion was directly related to the storm. It happened as Con Ed intentionally cut power to 65,000 customers in Lower Manhattan in an effort to protect equipment and allow for quicker restoration.
Another power loss occurred at Con Ed's Central Command Station at about the same time, but that explosion has since been repaired.
As of early Tuesday, a total of about 4.1 million customers served by Con Edison, LIPA, PSEG, JCP&L, Connecticut Light and Power, Orange & Rockland, and NYSEG were without power. A customer is defined by a power meter, meaning that far more than 3,570,000 people were in the dark.
In New York State alone, Andrew Gov. Cuomo's office said 1,374,312 customers were without power as of 10 p.m.
For updates on from your power company, click the links below:
• Jersey Central Power & Light
• Public Service Gas & Electric Company, N.J.
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