Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - Trees could be at additional risk of damage on Tuesday and Wednesday, as High Wind Warnings takes effect and powerful winds buffet the region.
WBEN is in touch with both utility and tree crews, who are also at the ready to deal with any power and downed tree issues that result from the ferocious wind.
Steve Esler of AJ's Tree Services tells WBEN the fall and winter have been tranquil so far. "You haven't seen a lot of high winds, that a lot of the trees and some of their weaknesses and areas where they can see failure and problems with our branches and whatnot. We can expect to see some damage for sure, if the wind forecast holds up," says Esler.
With winds coming from the southeast instead of the southwest, Esler says some trees could be more vulnerable for damage. Esler says forested areas should be ok, not so much for trees in more open areas. "When you see trees that are standing alone in the yard where they're used to take a west, southwest wind around here, they've kind of built up that strength and all there from the roots all the way up their trunk. They are used to taking that kind of forces. But then if you were to switch around that wind direction, certainly there's more risk when you have the same wind velocities, the different direction that they're not used to could cause some problems," explains Esler.
National Grid's Ken Kujawa says the utility has been monitoring the weather reports over the past few days. "In addition to National Grid crews, we are bringing in additional contractor crews that will be staged in Western New York prior to the wind storm so that we can respond to power outages as quickly and as safely as possible," says Kujawa. He says if you have any outages, call 1-800-867-5222.
NYSEG crews are also preparing. "We have 1300 line workers and 200 tree crews that are pre staged across our service areas across the state, so they are ready to respond as necessary," says Alexis Arnold.
Arnold says wind direction doesn't impact preparations for dealing with outages. "As soon as we get the forecast, we have meetings and we begin to plan immediately and stage the necessary crews so that if customers do experience a disruption in service, we are prepared to respond and work on restoring power right away," explains Arnold.
To report a power interruption, contact NYSEG at 1.800.572.1131 or RG&E at 1.800.743.1701.
Wind gusts could be as high as 70 mph.
