LIPA & National Grid Prepare for Hurricane Season

Uniondale, N.Y.—As Long Island enters the height of the 2008 hurricane season, the Long Island Power Authority (LIPA) and National Grid conducted its joint annual hurricane season preparedness drill today, which was monitored by the New York State Office of Emergency Management and the emergency management offices of Nassau and Suffolk counties and New York City.

“We make every effort to ensure that in the event of a major storm LIPA and National Grid are in the best position to restore our system as quickly and safely as possible,” said President & CEO Kevin S. Law.
   
“National Grid and its employees are prepared to respond quickly in the event of any weather related emergencies that may affect LIPA’s electric customers and National Grid’s gas customers,” said Tom King, president of National Grid’s U.S. business.  “Our employees have been trained across the company in emergency preparedness and are able to provide assistance wherever needed.  We’re ready to work with LIPA and public officials to ensure a smooth and coordinated storm response for Long Islanders.”
In preparation for a storm event LIPA and National Grid begin tracking major storms days before they near Long Island.  As a major storm or hurricane approaches the region, LIPA takes steps to respond quickly to storm-related outages.

For customer service, “21st Century”, an automatic reporting system that can process more than 100,000 customer calls per hour can be activated.  Automatically, outages are electronically recorded and reported to system operators to start the restoration process by assigning a job ticket to the reported outage.
In addition to the line crews, all employees have a second job if a major storm strikes and are trained for storm emergency assignments, and personnel work extended shifts around the clock to complete all service restorations as quickly as possible.

LIPA’s Storm Center at http://www.lipower.org/stormcenter  is available 24/7 for updates, outage information and storm restoration progress reports.
 
To help minimize storm damage to LIPA’s electric system, LIPA’s forestry program works throughout the year to identify and trim tree limbs in rights of way and along easements that could potentially cause outages during or after a storm. Additionally, customers are urged to have trees on private property surveyed independently to be assured that their trees or bushes are not experiencing dangerous and weakening rot.  Tree limbs that come in contact with electric lines remain the major cause of customer outages during storms, accounting for over 90% of all service disruptions. For more information on LIPA’s Forestry program, please visit LIPA’s Web site at http://www.lipower.org/community.

Well in advance of a hurricane or tropical storm reaching Long Island, LIPA’s customers are encouraged to follow these storm preparation recommendations to help ensure their families safety and comfort:

• Develop a family plan for survival and property protection. Rehearse the plan so everyone knows what to do.
• Have flashlights, battery-operated radios and extra batteries on hand. Check the batteries to make sure they are fresh.
• Know the hurricane risks in your area. Learn the storm surge history and elevation of your area. Learn the location of official shelters or make plans for a local hotel or motel. Be prepared to take alternate routes to these locations as main streets maybe closed.
• Learn safe routes inland away from the Ocean or LI Sound.
• If your residence is in a potential flood or storm surge zone, be prepared to evacuate when officials recommend it.
• Arrange now for elderly and others with special needs such as those who depend on electric life-support devices.  Alert LIPA customer service   (1-800-490-0025) about these support devices.
• Inventory personal property; safely secure all records and valuable documents in a watertight place.
• Have material available to protect your doors and windows. Boarding or shuttering windows is significantly more effective than taping windows which barely strengthens the window and will not protect at all against flying debris.
• Put together a family hurricane evacuation kit that includes bottled water, bedding and clothing, including sleeping bags and pillows, and appropriate prescription medicines.
• Ensure that enough non-perishable food and water supplies are on hand. NOAA suggests 1 gallon of water per person per day.
• Clear loose and clogged rain gutters and downspouts.
• Keep trees and shrubbery trimmed of dead wood.
• Determine where to move a boat in an emergency.
• Provide for pets.

If a hurricane or major tropical storm damages the region, Long Islanders are strongly cautioned to stay away from downed power lines. Immediately after the storm, outages will be evident to LIPA via its computerized control systems. LIPA’s computer systems automatically detect neighborhood service interruptions and begin the restoration process by alerting systems operators of the outage. However, should anyone notice a downed electric line or experience a single service interruption, call 1-800-490-0075. In addition, downed wires might end up covered by tree limbs or leaves, so be careful when letting children play outside after a storm.

For more information on hurricane preparedness, as well as links to weather sites and emergency response agencies visit LIPA’s Web site at http://lipower.org.

LIPA, a non-profit municipal electric provider, owns the retail electric Transmission and Distribution System on Long Island and provides electric service to more than 1.1 million customers in Nassau and Suffolk counties and the Rockaway Peninsula in Queens. LIPA is the 2nd largest municipal electric utility in the nation in terms of electric revenues, 3rd largest in terms of customers served and the 7th largest in terms of electricity delivered. In 2006, LIPA outperformed all other overhead electric utilities in New York State in all three major reliability categories. LIPA does not provide natural gas service or own any on-island generating assets. More information about LIPA can be found online at: http://www.lipower.org

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LIPA Contact Information:
Media Relations: (516) 719-9294
Media Pager: (516) 525-LIPA
media.relations@lipower.org
LIPA News Center
www.lipower.org/newscenter