Greater Sudbury Utilities is answering the call from Long Island Power Authority to restore service to the grid stricken by high winds and flooding cause by the remnants of Hurricane Sandy, according to a new release.
GSU is sending up to nine power line technicians and five pieces of equipment. When the Sudbury crews arrive in Long Island, they will participate in a safety briefing and be put immediately to work restoring power to thousands of Long Island residents who have been in the dark since last weekend's storm rolled through.
The workers left for the U.S. on Nov. 2.
The Sudbury contingent will join a host of other Canadian linemen heading for the U.S. to assist.
“There is a long history of mutual assistance in the Electric Utility Industry,” said Brian McMillan, vice-president - Distribution Electrical Systems at GSU. “Our crews have participated in restoration efforts in other areas including the big ice storm in eastern Ontario. It's comforting to know this tradition exists in the industry, and that if we were ever to find ourselves in a similar circumstance, we could expect the same type of assistance.”
He said Long Island Power Authority is still very much in "damage assessment mode" so it is difficult to say how long the local crew will be on Long Island, but McMillan anticipates it will be at least a week.
And while the authority is still assessing the damage, workers do know what kind of duties await them.
"There are a lot of poles and wires on the ground, so we'll be helping rebuild those lines," McMillan said.
In addition to the tradesmen being sent, GSU is sending three material-handling bucket trucks, one digger derrick boom truck, a pickup and a piece of off-road equipment used to perform utility operations in tight areas, in and around housing.
