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LIPA chief: We’re out there, and we’re on schedule for Friday

Long Island’s now 190,000 powerless residents might not have seen many Long Island Power Authority trucks this week, but workers are out there doing their jobs, said LIPA Chief Operating Officer Michael Hervey at a press conference in Hicksville today.

Mr. Hervey said while fixing what has been the third-worst power outages a Long Island utility company has sustained since Hurricane Gloria in 1985, workers must rebuild lines from the power source, which would explain why trucks weren’t seen all over the roads right after the storm.

“We have to rebuild the circuit from its source,” Mr. Hervey said. “It’s a very systematic effort.”

About 400,000 customers were effected by power outages after Tropical Storm Irene downed trees and utility poles across the Island Sunday.

A timeline has not yet been set for specific communities, but 90,000 customers have been restored in the past 24 hours, Mr. Hervey said, adding that some 90 percent of LIPA customers should have power by midnight Friday, a prediction LIPA officials first made Monday.

Roughly 600,000 customers were without power at the peak of outages Sunday.

Mr. Hervey said LIPA walk-in customer services have been closed since the storm but “on the web, we’re still open for business.”

Customers service representatives can also be reached at 1-800-490-0075.

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