Westport, CT – The following message was issued by First Selectman Jim Marpe, the Department of Public Works (DPW) and the Westport Emergency Response Team today:

Most roads are passable and maybe detoured if crews are in the area clearing debris.

Currently, 0.32 percent, or approximately 41, of Westport’s Eversource customers are without power. Those customers and others with specific outage issues are being addressed as quickly as possible.

• Due to the heatwave and for those in need, the Cooling Center at Greens Farms Elementary School (17 Morningside Drive South) is open today from 11 AM to 5 PM. The entrance is located on the left side of the building by the bus loop.  Please wear a face covering and maintain social distance recommendations.

• Homeowners should contact electricians to manage individual issues, such as wires that have been pulled from the home or electrical panels. These situations require a certified electrician to re-attach those wires. Neither Eversource crews or Town DPW crews are qualified to re-attach or service individual home electric panels.

Cable & Internet Service

If your power has been restored and your cable/internet access remains down, please contact your provider. Those providers rely upon electrical restoration or pole re-installation before their services can be addressed. Some fiber cables have been compromised. Town officials are also in contact with providers to encourage the facilitation of those services.

Optimum (also known as Cablevision/Altice) has reported that teams have been deployed around the clock restoring services as quickly as possible.  The percentage of customers in Connecticut without Optimum service due to the storm has fallen from more than 44% to less than 4% today.  Optimum would also like to share the following restoration tips with our residents:

Service Restoration:  Trouble Shooting Tips 

If you experienced a loss of power, it is best to restart your equipment using the following steps:

• Unplug your equipment from its power source.
• Wait 30 seconds.
• Plug your equipment back into the power source.

If your service does not return after restarting, it is possible that:

• The power that feeds our network in your area comes from a different commercial power source than the power that feeds your home or business location or there is another issue relating to network power that needs to be addressed.   We are coordinating with the electric companies to identify these issues and ensure the prioritization of repair or restoration.
• There is damage to the Optimum network, like a downed utility pole or wire break, and our crews are proactively working to rectify this type of damage to restore service.

Optimum has created the opportunity for customers to check on service status online by doing the following:

• Go to optimum.net/support/outage and sign in with Optimum ID and password. Next, under Support, located in the upper right corner, click “Service status”

Report Service Issues:

If you are experiencing a service issue, Optimum has created four channels for you to advise us of your issue.  Contacting Optimum via any of these channels will result in a trouble ticket being created that will direct a repair team to assess and address the issue:

• Visit optimum.net/support/outage
• Message Optimum at optimum.net/chat
• Send Tweet to @Optimumhelp
• Call (866) 950-3278

Request A Credit:

Customers may submit a request for a credit by completing the information at optimum.net/support/request-a-credit

Safety Information:

Homeowners are often seriously injured trying to do their own post-storm cleanup work.

• Consider consulting a professional before undertaking any major restoration or tree / large limb removal.

• Do not use a chain saw if you are not experienced in properly and safely operating it, or if you are not physically fit.  If you must use a chainsaw, work only on the ground, not in a tree.

• Use extreme caution when using ladders.

• Stay safe in hot weather, hydrate, and pace yourself.

• Westport Yard Waste Site at Bayberry Lane is open for those who wish to discard tree limbs and branches.

Food safety reminders: 

• Any food remaining in a refrigerator or freezer during the outage should be considered contaminated. Do not rely upon appearance or smell to determine if it is safe to consume. When in doubt, throw it out.
• When power comes back on, clean out your refrigerator and freezer BEFORE you put new food in it.  Wash the inside of the refrigerator and freezer with soap and warm water then wipe with a mild solution of ½ tablespoon bleach in a gallon of water. Keep doors open to allow to dry. Once dry, allow the unit to get cold before placing food inside.

This press release was made possible by: