'We Know You Need Power, Report Outage Anyway'

Though it still defies logic, JCPL still want to hear from you directly that your power is out.

When you call, follow instructions for reporting an outage and give the mobile number you are using right now. That way, officials say, if you are staying somewhere other than home, JCPL can alert you when the lights come back on.

JCP&L: (888) 544-4877 a.k.a (888) LIGHTSS

You can also use this link: JCP&L

Oceanport Mayor Michael Mahon told residents at Thursday's council meeting that according to JCPL's system there are only 194 homes without power in Oceanport. The reality is 1,200 homes without electricity, he said.

Mahon said he has spoken to JCP&L and told the company that it can't rely on this reporting system and to keep crews working.

Mahon told residents that Governor Chris Christie has applied significant pressure to the utility perform better than it did in Irene, and as a result, "The recovery effort should be overwhelming."

Power has already been restored to some parts of Oceanport like Branchport, Wolf Hill, Burnt Mill, Milton and Myrtle, though in some cases only portions of the streets.

Residents may not see repair trucks on their street right away, and when they do they may only be there to do a portion of the job.

"You may not see them locally but their work regionally will have a greater local impact," he said referring to JCPL's work to restore transmission lines, which are being done by helicopter, and then smaller regional substations, which send power to local transformers.

According to Oceanport  Director Buzz Baldanza, crews from as far away as Nebraska are in town working. Some of these crews are line crews, other designated to remove trees from lines. Baldanza said all crews are working out of a staging area at Monmouth Park.

There is no word yet on when power will be restored to any particular part of town, but he said, "The crews will be here all night."

This message was posted on Facebook by Oceanport Councilman Joe Irace on Friday:

The distribution system has break points beyond the wires. Many transformers failed and switch yards were damaged. The effort is directed toward repairs that will restore larger areas first.

If there are downed trees with wires in them our Oceanport Public Works crew cannot touch them. They have to be inspected by a dedicated tree crew with JCP&L first to repair and remove.

We now have many crews in Oceanport but they may be dedicated line crews, transformer crews, tree crews, meter crews, etc. So they may move on as their portion of the repair is accomplished. If all goes well, the time will be short.

We will remain in contact with JCP&L until Ocanport is 100% restored.