In total, 265 underground structure events — which include manhole cover explosions and fires — have occurred throughout Queens this year.
“This is getting ridiculous,” said Councilwoman Helen Sears (D-Jackson Heights). “How many times is this going to happen before Con Ed gets its act together?”
A spokesman for the utility blamed the spike in incidents on this winter’s above-average snowfall. “We regret any manhole fires and incidents that have caused temporary power outages for our customers,” said Con Ed spokesman Michael Clendenin.“They typically follow long winters when there has been a lot of snow and salt spread on the streets, and we have responded to many underground cable fires this year throughout our service area.”
Almost 200,000 tons of salt was applied to Queens roadways in January and February this year, according to Con Ed. By contrast, the city spread about 90,000 tons during the same two-month period in 2008.
Many recent Con Ed-linked incidents, including a spectacular two-story electrical blaze on 80th Street in Jackson Heights last month, have been blamed on road salt runoff corroding underground electric feeder cables.
However, the correlation between the amount of rock salt spread on city streets and the number of underground electric grid mishaps is far from absolute.
In 2005, city roadways got hit with a whopping 300,000 tons of road salt, yet Queens experienced a total of 190 underground electrical incidents — 75 less than the borough’s current tally.
Community activists like Jackson Heights resident Laura Cadorette criticized the utility for failing to adequately maintain underground electrical cables after an electrical fire earlier this year. “It’s only a matter of time before someone is seriously injured by one of these explosions,” Cadorette said.
|
|
