STORM RECOVERY LATEST: States of emergency, outage restoration, etc.

UPDATED Dec. 17, 5:20 p.m.

Restoration times have been added to National Grid's website. Area-wide outages have dropped below 9,000. The company says it expects to have all customer issues wrapped up by late Wednesday night.

At the height of outages, around 229,000 Grid customers and 34,000 NYSEG customers were without power.

National Grid reports almost 8,000 customers still without power (as of 3 p.m. 12/17). Most of the outages are in Albany, Columbia, and Rensselaer Counties. All National Grid outages are expected to be restored by 11:45 p.m. Wednesday.

NYSEG said that power has been restored to 93% of their customers and they are expected to be back online by noon Thursday.

Approximately 2,000 NYSEG customers in the Mechanicville Division that includes parts of Saratoga, Washington, Rensselaer and Columbia counties are without power as of 4 p.m. Wednesday. Some NYSEG customers could be without power until noon Thursday, the company said.

For health warnings and tips on storm cleanup and recovery, click here.

For information on power outages check the National Grid Website and the NYSEG website.

For information on school and community venue delays and closures, click the School Watch tab for the latest.

Emergency shelters provide a warm place for residents to spend the night and have a meal.

Warming shelters are short-term shelters to provide immediate relef for residents needing to get out of the cold. They are not overnight shelters.

COUNTIES
For specific towns and cities within these counties, scroll down the page.

Albany County is seeing around 2,200 National Grid customers without power (as of 5 p.m. 12/17). The town of Colonie has the most outages, with 733 customers still without power (as of 5 p.m. 12/17). Power there is expected to be restored by 6:15 p.m. Thursday (previous estimates pegged a restoration time of 11:45 p.m. Wednesday).

Red Cross has one shelter still open in Albany County at the Colonie Village Hall, 2 Thunder Road, Albany.

Albany city Mayor Jerry Jennings is urging any city residents experiencing continued outage to contact National Grid at 800-867-5222. Residents requiring special assistance as a result of the storm may contact Albany Police at 438-4000.

Columbia County is still under a state of emergency (as of 7 p.m., Dec. 16th), but has lifted its local travel ban.

There are 1,408 National Grid customers without power (as of 5 p.m. 12/17). Power is mostly expected to be restored by 6 p.m. Thursday.

The county and Red Cross has closed the shelter at the Ichabod Crane High School (as of 12 p.m., Dec. 17th).

The Taghakanic Firehouse is still providing shelter to any residents who need it. Residents in need of transportation to a shelter may contact the Columbia County Emergency Operations Center at 828-1212.

In a press release sent from the county at 5 p.m. Dec. 15th, there was no mention of any availability of shelter at the Hudson Middle School and the Stuyvesant Town Hall, where shelters had been opened over the weekend. 

The Chatham School District and the Ichabod Crane Central School District will remain closed Tuesday, Dec. 16th, and will be open Wednesday, Dec. 17th. The Hawthorne Valley School and the Taconic Hills School District will remain closed both Tuesday and Wednesday, Dec. 16th and 17th, per recommendations made to the superintendents Monday afternoon.

Dry ice and bottled water will be available Monday at the New Lebanon Fire Department, Rte 20, New Lebanon, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Residents may call the Columbia County Emergency Operations Center at 828-1212 for directions to emergency shelters or assistance with transportation.

Residents with special health needs or who are disabled are being offered handicapped-accessible buses by area nursing homes, including Wittier and the Pine Haven.

Power outages were reported at Columbia Memorial Hospital and some long-term health care facilities, which were operating on emergency generators. 

The Columbia County Airport was closed.

The Columbia County Solid Waste Stations located in Kinderhook, Chatham and Greenport will be open Tuesday through Saturday the week of Dec. 15th between 7:30 a.m. and 4 p.m. The Gallatin station will be open Wednesday and Saturday the week of Dec. 15th from 7:30 a.m. through 4 p.m. All remaining stations will be open their normal scheduled days of operation, but will have extended hours from 7:30 a.m. through 4 p.m.

Highway travel remains dangerous in certain areas; the Taconic State Parkway is still closed from Route 199 to Route 23 in Claverack. State Route 82 also remains impassable in certain areas.

Greene County is no longer in a state of emergency. Shelters have been set up at: Cornell Hook & Ladder Fire Company (77 Gill Road in the town of New Baltimore); Medway-Grapeville Volunteer Fire Company (1352 Route 51 in the town of New Baltimore); and at Windham Wastewater Treatment Plant (491 South Street in the town of Windham). Residents may call 622-3499 or 622-3567 for more information.

Rensselaer County has declared a state of emergency beginning at 9:05 a.m. on Dec. 12th for a period of up to five days and will continue its state of emergency for another five days, announced at 5:30 p.m. Dec. 17th. There are about 3,385 National Grid customers without power (as of 5 p.m. 12/17). The city of Troy has 1,900 customers without power, and the estimated restoration time there is Thursday at 6:15 p.m. Almost all other towns and villages have a restoration time of 3 p.m. Thursday.

The county and Red Cross has closed its shelter at the Verizon Building on Sixth Ave. (as of 4:30 p.m., Dec. 15th).

Shelter have closed at the Hudson Valley Community College Gymnasium and at the Tsatsawassa Fire House in Brainard near the intersection of Route 66 and Route 20.

Any county residents who receive food stamps and experienced food spoilage due to an outage lasting four hours or more may be eligible to receive replacement food stamps. Food loss must be reported within ten days of losing power. Contact the Unity House Nutrition Education and Outreach Program Coordinator at 272-2352 or visit the Unity House Street Ministry (2431 Sixth Ave. in Troy) for more information.

The Troy City School District, East Greenbush School District and Lansingburgh School District all canceled school Monday.

Saratoga County has 204 National Grid customers without power (as of 5 p.m. 12/17).  Power there for the majority of residents is expected to be restored today, except for Clifton Park and Waterford, which have a restoration time of 6:15 p.m. Thursday. 

Red Cross has closed all its shelters in the County as of 1 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 16th. Shelters had been open through the weekend at the Senior Center in Clifton Park, the Stillwater Community Center and the Halfmoon Town Hall, but they are now officially closed.

Schenectady County has about 404 National Grid customers without power (as of 5 p.m. 12/17). The city of Niskayuna has the most outages at 320 and power is expected to be restored by 6:15 p.m. Thursday.The city of Schenectady is still under a state of emergency, to last through 12 p.m. Thursday.

All warming stations and shelters have been consolidated into one primary shelter at the Memorial Field House at Union College 807 Union St., Schenectady, NY.

The town of Niskayuna can no longer accommodate additional residents at its fire stations (as of 3:25 p.m. 12/12). Residents who need shelter or assistance may contact the town's non-emergency number at 374-3159.

Residents using oxygen or in need of a medical equipment provider, the following are open and taking calls: Apria Health (452-4951); Home Therapy Equipment (664-6654); American Home Patient (451-7017); Northeast Home Medical Therapy (271-9600); and Prime Care (456-6192).

Schoharie County is under a state of emergency (as of 3:30 p.m. Dec. 15th). Around 120 National Grid customers without power (as of 5 p.m. 12/17).

The county and Red Cross has closed all its shelters (at the Schoharie School, the United Methodist Church of Esperance, the West Fulton Fire Deparment, the Gallupville Lutheran Church, and the Huntersland Fire Department). (11:00 a.m., Dec. 17th).

All power is expected to be restored late Wednesday night, except for the village and town of Cobleskill and the town of Seward who are expected to have power restored on Tuesday afternoon.

Warming shelters have been set up at: the Central Bridge Methodist Church; the Huntersland Fire Department; the Gallupville Lutheran Church; the Cobleskill Fire Department; the Schoharie Fire Department; the Middleburgh Fire Department; the Carlisle Fire Department; the Summit Fire Department (closed 12am to 8am); the Broome Fire Department; the Huntersland Fire Department; the Conesville Fire Department (closed 12am to 8am); the Jefferson Fire Department, and Schoharie Elementary School (136 Academy Dr.).

Washington County has under 280 National Grid customers without power (as of 5 p.m. 12/17).  Power there is expected to be restored late tonight.

Red Cross has closed its shelter at the Cambridge Rescue Squad as of 1 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 16th.

CITIES

Schenectady has declared a state of emergency for the period of 7 a.m. Friday, December 12th through 12 p.m. Thursday, December 18th. Residents are asked to avoid unnecessary travel and to use extreme caution if they must travel through the city.

Saratoga Springs has declared a snow emergency. Vehicles may not be parked in any one spot for more than 12 hours at a time, except for those streets posted for alternate-side parking.

Troy has declared a state of emergency. Emergency shelters have been set up in conjunction with Red Cross at the Hudson Valley Community College Gymnasium (opens at 3 p.m.) and at Verizon Building on Sixth Ave., across from the Troy Police Station (opens at 5 p.m.). Anyone intending to use a shelter should bring pillows and blankets with them, as well as any medication they may need for the night.

The city is working with CDTA to arrange transportation to the Verizon Building shelter. Beginning at 4 p.m., buses marked "Special" will pick up residents at the Troy Plaza, the Price Chopper in Lansingburgh, and directly across from the Uncle Sam Parking Garage on Third St., and bring them to the Verizon shelter. Any residents with questions may call either 271-5139 or 271-5105. 

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Additional Safety Tips From National Grid:

• Never touch downed power lines, and always assume that any fallen lines are live electric wires. If you see one, report it immediately to National Grid or your local emergency response organization.  
• If you use a generator to supply power during an outage, be sure to only operate it outdoors. Before operating generators, be sure to disconnect from National Grid's system by shutting off the main breaker located in the electric service panel.  Failure to do this could jeopardize the safety of crews working to restore power.
• If you lose power, turn off any appliances that were on when the power went off, but leave one light on so you will know when power is restored.
• Power problems can sometimes interrupt public water supply systems or disable well pumps, so it's an especially good idea to keep a supply of bottled drinking water handy, as well as some canned food.
• People who depend on electric-powered life support equipment, such as a respirator, should let National Grid know. To register as a National Grid life support customer, call the company's Customer Service Center.  In New York, that number is 800-642-4272.  In New England, the number is 800-322-3223.