The next time the power goes out in the Bronx, city officials will be relying on a new response team instead of Con Edison to get a number of customers affected.
City leaders say last month?s blackouts, as a result of the heat wave, prompted them to create a team to get a more accurate number of outages. The ?Power Outage Response Team? (PORT) is made up of responders from the police and fire department, the community assistance unit and the Office of Emergency Management (OEM). City officials say the responders will canvass affected neighborhoods, going door to door to get an accurate picture of the problem.
The OEM commissioner says PORT was created after Con Edison?s failure to provide timely and accurate figures of last month?s blackout in Queens. City officials say the miscalculation from Con Edison prevented help from getting to all those who needed it.