(Updated-June 30) An equipment failure caused yesterday’s power outage along the Route 58 commercial corridor, a spokesperson for PSEG-Long Island said today.
The equipment failure resulted in the loss of one of the three phases of the power supply wire, according to PSEG-LI spokesperson Elizabeth Flagler.
The outage affected 367 customers for 50 minutes. It started at Stop and Shop and spread west along Route 58, Flagler said.
Several buildings on Route 58 were evacuated due to smoke conditions resulting from the failure. Reports of smoke in several commercial buildings began coming in at around 5:30 p.m. today, including Holiday Inn Express, several offices in the Commerce Park complex near Panera Bread, Nautica in Tanger 2 and Applebee’s Restaurant, according to radio reports.
Traffic signals in the area — which stretched from the terminus of the L.I. Expressway east to Mill Road, were also affected.
All the stores in Tanger 1 and half of the stores in Tanger 2 were temporarily without power, according to radio reports, and Tanger was briefly considering closing the mall.
Riverhead Fire Department firefighters responded to multiple locations along Route 58 simultaneously and fire chiefs remain on scene at various locations, investigating the incidents and making sure the commercial properties were safeguarded by manually cutting off power to the premises.
Flanders Fire Department was called in to stand by at Riverhead headquarters.
Fire chiefs declared the situation under control and released all apparatus at 6:37 p.m.
Check back for more information as it develops.
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