November 14, 2012

Steping down - LIPA head

From FOX News:
Chief operating officer of NY utility criticized for Sandy response quitting at end of year
The chief operating officer of a utility company heavily criticized for its response to Superstorm Sandy is stepping down.

The Long Island Power Authority announced Tuesday that Michael Hervey had tendered his resignation, effective at the end of the year. Hervey has been with LIPA for 12 years.

LIPA has come under withering criticism since Sandy knocked out power to more than a million of its customers on Oct. 29, both for how long it was taking to get power restored and for poor communication with customers.

There are about 10,000 outages in Nassau and Suffolk counties, just east of New York City, and LIPA officials have said they hope to have most of them resolved by Wednesday.
From Bloomberg:
Long Island Power Authority Sued Over Hurricane Sandy
New York�s Long Island Power Authority and National Grid Plc, which operates the utility�s electricity network, were sued over their Hurricane Sandy response while about 45,000 of LIPA�s customers remained blacked out two weeks after the storm.

Two customers accuse LIPA of failing to provide electric services because of its �disregard� in management and maintenance of equipment, facilities and personnel and its �failure to replace an outdated, obsolete outage management system which lacks the ability to manage large-scale outages,� according to a complaint filed today in New York State Supreme Court in Nassau County.
And from the New York Post:
Cuomo�s LIPA fail
Gov. Cuomo charged full-tilt-boogie into New York�s public utilities this week � and none of them has his knickers twisted tighter than the hapless Long Island Power Authority.

He�s even threatened to lift LIPA�s franchise, complaining that some 200,000 customers remained without power yesterday, some two weeks after Superstorm Sandy.

�We gave them a franchise because they represented themselves as expert in doing this,� said the governor. �They failed.�
More:
The agency had ignored a 2006 recommendation that it update its management system, which runs on an obsolete 25-year-old computer language.

During Sandy, LIPA used memo pads and dial-up Internet access � rather than smartphones and tablet computers � to track power outages.

For years, the agency has neglected such critical tasks as maintaining rotting poles and trimming trees around power lines.

Moreover, LIPA officials ignored these criticisms because they were convinced Irene was a once-in-a-lifetime disaster.
I hope that sufficient heads will roll. The LIPA board was appointed by NY State -- another example of government efficiency. Posted by DaveH at November 14, 2012 1:16 PM
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