$1.4B in Sandy Aid to Rebuild Long Island Electric Grid

By Rashed Mian

The federal government is making more than $730 million available to fund long-awaited Long Island power grid upgrades and an additional $700 million to cover the cost of Sandy-related repairs, officials said.

The $1.4 billion agreement, announced Friday by Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s office, which characterized the move as “unprecedented” in New York State because of its promise to provide protection against future outages without burdening ratepayers with the costs of repairs.

Cuomo’s office said Federal Emergency Management Agency funding will go toward elevating damaged substations, moving certain power lines underground and automatic sectionalizing switches across the grid, among other improvements.

“We need to reimagine New York for the new reality of extreme weather and I want to thank FEMA for providing this new support to help us build back better and stronger than ever before,” Cuomo said in a statement.

http://www.longislandpress.com/2014/02/21/1-4b-in-sandy-aid-to-rebuild-long-island-electric-grid/