Con Edison's Blame on Salt Spread as Brooklyn Residents Suffer Through Ongoing Power Outages
Thousands of Brooklynites are still dealing with the aftermath of last week's massive snowstorm, which has left over 2,000 residents without power. The city's efforts to combat the cold have come at a cost - literally. According to Con Edison, the 116 million pounds of salt dumped on city streets and sidewalks is causing localized service interruptions due to its corrosive effects on the company's underground cables.
The utility company claims that the mixture of salt and water seeping into the ground, combined with the massive snow piles, makes it difficult for crews to access the lines to make necessary repairs. "These conditions are why portions of certain neighborhoods are experiencing outages, and why restorations have taken longer than anticipated," said Con Edison spokesperson Jamie McShane.
The problem lies in the corrosive nature of salt water, which rapidly damages metal, causes electrical shorts, and leads to equipment failure. The company's cables, which distribute power to each building or structure, are particularly vulnerable to this damage. As a result, residents are facing extended outages - some have been without power for over 24 hours.
Con Edison is working closely with the New York City Emergency Management department to dig out these locations and repair damaged cables. However, local businesses in the affected areas were unable to operate over the weekend due to the outages. The company has also deployed warming buses to areas impacted by the power outages, but it seems that more needs to be done.
City Councilmembers Chi Ossé and Shahana Hanif are calling on Con Edison to take immediate corrective action, including automatically suspending billing and issuing full credits for affected residents. With over 2,000 Brooklynites still in the dark, it's clear that something needs to change - fast.
Thousands of Brooklynites are still dealing with the aftermath of last week's massive snowstorm, which has left over 2,000 residents without power. The city's efforts to combat the cold have come at a cost - literally. According to Con Edison, the 116 million pounds of salt dumped on city streets and sidewalks is causing localized service interruptions due to its corrosive effects on the company's underground cables.
The utility company claims that the mixture of salt and water seeping into the ground, combined with the massive snow piles, makes it difficult for crews to access the lines to make necessary repairs. "These conditions are why portions of certain neighborhoods are experiencing outages, and why restorations have taken longer than anticipated," said Con Edison spokesperson Jamie McShane.
The problem lies in the corrosive nature of salt water, which rapidly damages metal, causes electrical shorts, and leads to equipment failure. The company's cables, which distribute power to each building or structure, are particularly vulnerable to this damage. As a result, residents are facing extended outages - some have been without power for over 24 hours.
Con Edison is working closely with the New York City Emergency Management department to dig out these locations and repair damaged cables. However, local businesses in the affected areas were unable to operate over the weekend due to the outages. The company has also deployed warming buses to areas impacted by the power outages, but it seems that more needs to be done.
City Councilmembers Chi Ossé and Shahana Hanif are calling on Con Edison to take immediate corrective action, including automatically suspending billing and issuing full credits for affected residents. With over 2,000 Brooklynites still in the dark, it's clear that something needs to change - fast.
... I mean, I get it, salt can be a real pain, but come on! 
116 million pounds of it? That's just crazy talk! 
And now thousands of people are paying the price with no power and freezing their butts off. 
It's not like Con Edison didn't see this coming - all those salt trucks around, making a mess everywhere... 
They should've thought about the long game here. 
Anyway, city council members should just chill out for a sec and let Con Edison do its thing... but at the same time, yeah, they gotta take responsibility too. 
Can't we all just get along... or at least get the power back on? 
come on con edison! 
those poor ppl stuck in dark ages with no power 4 days straight is not cool 
and btw, automatic suspension of billing & credits 4 affected residents? 
that's da way 2 do it 
. These outages are not only inconvenient, they're also putting people's health at risk - especially the elderly and young kids who can't just bundle up and wait for the power to come back on 
. I'm all for Con Edison taking steps to protect their cables, but this is a classic case of blame-shifting. They need to step up and take responsibility for their own mess 
.
THOSE 116 MILLION POUNDS OF SALT ARE JUST A BUNCH OF EXCUSE-MAKING. THE COMPANY KNOWS THEY SHOULD BE DOING BETTER MAINTENANCE, BUT INSTEAD THEY'RE POINTING FINGERS AT US. I FEEL FOR THE RESIDENTS WHO'VE BEEN WITHOUT POWER FOR OVER 24 HOURS - IT'S TIME FOR CON EDISON TO STEP UP AND TAKE RESPONSIBILITY 
.
. The question is, will the city step in and make them take responsibility?
It's like, yeah, maybe Con Edison should've thought about how this would affect their cables before dumping all that stuff out. And now people are without power for days? That's just ridiculous. 
It's like, basic human needs, right? 
. The fact that they're saying it's corrosive to their cables just doesn't sit right with me 
. Warming buses are a good start, but we need more than that... maybe some temporary power solutions or something 
Its no wonder the infrastructure can't handle it!
. Maybe they could explore using salt-free ice-melt products or even adopting a snow-repelling pavement coating technology 
. The utility company's claim that 116 million pounds of salt are causing localized service interruptions due to their corrosive effects on underground cables seems like a plausible explanation, but I worry that it's just a Band-Aid solution for a more systemic issue.
️. I think City Councilmembers Chi Ossé and Shahana Hanif are onto something with their calls for automatic billing suspension and full credits – it's time for Con Edison to take responsibility for their actions and provide some real support to those affected 
.
like a bad habit they just can't kick. I guess when you dump 116 million pounds of stuff on your sidewalks and expect the world to be fine, that's what happens! 
"Corrosive effects" yeah right, it's just plain old damage control.
and the corrosive effects of salt water are a major issue. but seriously, 2k people without power for over 24 hours is ridiculous 
con edison needs to step up their game and take responsibility for this mess. city council members are right to call out the company and demand action 
... I mean, who wants to be without power for days? Con Edison is trying their best, but that salt thingy is a real pain 
, but it doesn't seem like they're doing enough, you know? 
