Heavy storms knocked out power in New York and New Jersey to start the week.
A ConEdison outage map showed reports of electrical outages in New York stretching from Lower Manhattan to upstate Peekskill Monday afternoon. More than 600 residents and businesses were reportedly without lights in the College Park neighborhood in Queens.
Better than 100 customers in Gravesend, Brooklyn experienced power issues. At least 1,500 disruptions were reported in the northern suburbs between New Rochelle and White Plaines.
Poweroutage.us counted nearly 39,000 outages throughout the Empire State at 2 p.m. More than half of those problems impacted Dutchess County.
New Jersey’s Public Service Enterprise Group and Grid (PSEG) said 15,415 customers were impacted by more than 1,200 active outages around 1 p.m.
A ConEd representative assured Bronx media outlet The Norwood News that the city’s power outage is unrelated to Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s star-powered wedding at Madison Square Garden at the top of the holiday weekend.
Poor weather conditions that began Friday and persisted throughout the weekend are being blamed for energy problems as well as toppled trees and at least one Garden State death. A Scotch Plains motorist was killed when a tree limb fell onto his car, according to New Jersey’s News 12
New York Blood Center (NYBC) issued an urgent call for blood donors resulting from severe weekend storms that “significantly disrupted blood collection efforts” in New York and New Jersey.
NYBC said Monday that it collected just 4,500 blood donations last week as opposed to the 7,500 it had anticipated.
“The regional blood supply now stands at just a two-day level, well below the ideal five-to-seven-day supply needed to ensure hospitals have blood available whenever patients need it,” officials said.
NYBC Vice President of Operations Jeannie Mascolino said every donor unable to reach a donor center impacts patients undergoing life-saving treatment, trauma care, surgeries and organ transplants.