NJ Utility Board Holds Hearings on Sandy Outages

Much of New Jersey was spared the storm surge from Superstorm Sandy that destroyed so much of the shore areas. But for those who missed that part of the hurricane, the next worst thing that happened was the loss of electric power.

In Cherry Hill, some customers were in the dark for a week after the storm brought down about 400 trees in the township, which left township officials and homeowners frustrated and clamoring for updates. Now the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) wants to know what consumers think about how their local electric utilities handled the hurricane.

NJBPU is seeking public input in a series of public forums throughout the state. The first two hearings, which will be held in Basking Ridge Dec. 10 and 12, will focus on the performance of Jersey Central Power & Light (JCP&L). Another involving the Rockland Electric Company is scheduled for Dec. 18, in Ramsey.

These are just the beginnings of hearings that will held statewide, according to an NJBPU press release. Other power companies, such as PSE&G, the dominant supplier in Camden County, are expected to have a turn to face the public as well, but "details on those hearing will be released when the hearing dates and locations are finalized," acording to the statement.

In its wrap-up e-mail to customers last month, PSE&G provided some stats on the outages from Sandy, during which 1.7 million of its customers were without power for some portion of a two-week period.

"We restored power to more customers than in any other storm in our history— or in the history of any utility in the country," the statement read.

(See the PDF attached to this story for details).