Power Outage in Brooklyn Affects Hundreds During Severe Cold

Many Brooklyn residents find themselves without power or heat until Monday morning following a major outage that began late Saturday night, coinciding with a sharp drop in temperatures.

As of Sunday afternoon, around 1,500 Con Edison customers were still in the dark, while crews worked diligently to restore service amidst a record-breaking cold snap.

The temperature fell to just 3 degrees Celsius on Sunday, but with the wind chill, it felt as low as -14 degrees Celsius.

Bushwick appears to be the hardest hit area, with approximately 1,000 residents affected as of Sunday night.

Initially, Con Edison hoped to restore power by 3 p.m. Sunday, but that timeline was later pushed to 7 a.m. Monday.

Those relying on electric heating have had to endure frigid conditions, either huddled in their homes or alternatively seeking warmth at friends’ places or designated warming centers.

One resident, Camila, a 35-year-old DJ from Bushwick, lost her heat on Sunday afternoon. She expressed her discomfort after seeking shelter at a warming center.

“It feels like we’re in some kind of freak Alaska event. It’s really cold inside,” she mentioned, clad in a down jacket.

Camila, accompanied by her two cats, is in the process of figuring out a more comfortable solution. “If I stay in my apartment tonight, I’ll be layering up with all my clothes,” she said.

Expressing frustration, she noted, “It’s wild. Honestly, I don’t understand how Con Edison is handling this. There seems to be no urgency.” She pondered what people without friends or family would do in this situation.

Michael Murphy, a 60-year-old father, reported spending $477 on a hotel room to escape the cold. He had considered going to his in-laws in Staten Island but decided to make the hotel a fun family escape instead.

“It’s dark and cold outside, and I can feel the temperature dropping,” he shared while trying to stay warm in his car.

Melissa Washington, a mother of four, discussed her plan to head to her in-laws’ home. “We really haven’t gone through anything like this since the blackout back in 2003,” she recalled.

She also criticized Con Edison for their lack of communication. “Now, I have to watch the Super Bowl on these tiny phones,” she complained, staring at her iPhone.

Con Edison stated that issues arose from snow and road salt affecting underground equipment.

In response to the biting cold, approximately 65 warming centers, including warming buses, opened across the city over the weekend.

According to forecasters, winds might reach 50 mph while wind chills could make temperatures feel between -15 and -25 degrees.

AccuWeather’s Senior Meteorologist, Tom Kines, warned of the dangers, stating, “If you’re not properly protected, you could suffer from frostbite or hypothermia if outdoors longer than 30 minutes.”

A rare extreme cold warning was issued for the city, set to remain in effect until 1 p.m. Sunday, with a severe advisory lasting until 4 a.m. Monday.

Tragically, at least 18 New Yorkers have died outdoors during this prolonged cold spell. Thirteen fatalities were due to hypothermia, while three were linked to overdose, with two more cases still being examined.

On Saturday morning, an 81-year-old man was found dead on a rooftop in Brooklyn, prompting an investigation into whether the freezing temperatures contributed to his death.